Her Gaming Life in GA
by blessifier
Summary: Out of curiosity, Mikan decided to try a MMORPG game she found online. Never did she think she would meet someone who lived across the country - someone who she couldn't help but grow fond of.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Who He Is**

She wasn't exactly sure who this person was.

Mikan cursed when the boss monster shot out a deflect shield, immediately transforming her character into a tiny ghost apparition. In the middle of her screen, a tiny message popped up: You will be revived to the nearest town.

Her screen then blacked out onto a different map, where she refilled her health bar and zipped back into the battlefield through a blue portal.

After a few minutes of smashing her main attack button and teleporting across the map, the feminine figure of the boss collapsed onto the ground and faded, resulting in rewards and game cash that spilled over the ground. Mikan's hazel eyes scanned over the screen until they landed on a pair of blue-ornate pants. Her jaw dropped to the floor.

"Oh my lord..."

Her hands quivered.

"YES YES YES!" she squealed, bouncing on her office chair. "I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! I DID IT! It's complete!"

Still cheering, she clicked on her inventory, where she equipped the blue ornate pants. A nebulous blue haze now surrounded her avatar as her stats increased by 9% and a satisfying 140% boss damage smacked itself on the stats tab.

"I did it!" Mikan repeated, not believing her luck. She got off her chair, jumped a few more times, and was about to grab a celebratory drink before she spotted the familiar ign (In-game name) pop online.

Her fingers immediately snapped back to the keyboard as she typed to her buddies chat.

 _HazelOrbz: Dude, I just got the complete GAKUEN set with set effect! All stats 9% and 30% more boss damage. ;D I'm all good until I reach level 100 now!_

Mikan then smirked a little before continuing.

 _HazelOrbz: Aren't you proud of me?_

A couple of random buddies piped up to congratulate her, announcing their envy. Sure Mikan grinned at their jealousy. But she didn't want her brag to be directed at them (even though she thanked each of her buddies). She just wanted that person to reply.

Finally, after a couple of minutes, the ign popped up.

 _Flame: Noob._

Her eyes widened as she angrily typed back, aghast.

 _HazelOrbz: I just solo-ed one of the hardest bosses on Hard Mode!_

 _Flame: Do Hell-Mode._

 _HazelOrbz: ..._

 _Flame: Can't, huh? Nub._

 _HazelOrbz: -_-_

"Curse my limitations as a support class!" Mikan growled as she exited the boss room. Her character ended up in a town, where she clicked on her buddies tab and hovered her mouse over his name. "Where is he anyways?" she mumbled.

 _Flame - Ch1 : Nifridia_ , it read. She edged her face closer to read the fine text before the buddies list blooped a notification.

 _Flame: Are you going to stalk me now?_

She let out a yelp of surprise before her fingers ran through a lie.

 _HazelOrbz: No, weirdo! You're probably going to stalk me._

 _Flame: Who would want to stalk you?_

 _HazelOrbz: You, duh._

 _Flame: Please. Flatter yourself._

 _HazelOrbz: I will, pooface!_

 _TobyIllusion: haha you guys are funny._

 _Flame: I already got the set effect when I was level 60. What level are you again?_

 _HazelOrbz: I'm a support class!_

 _Flame: Excuses._

 _HazelOrbz: I'm only level 65 anyways! Only 5 levels from when you got the full equipment set!_

 _Flame: I still call excuses._

 _PermKitty: Poor Toby got ignored._

 _TobyIllusion: . . ._

She bristled in annoyance. Was a small congratulations from him too much to expect? She just wanted a "gratz" or whatever he said to others when they leveled or succeeded in something.

On her computer screen, another character popped up, jumping next to Mikan's. She changed the chatbox to 'General' and waited for the person to say something.

 _ShadowxStar: Hey, wanna like my character? I'll like yours back._

 _HazelOrbz: Sure._

 _ShadowxStar: haha thanks. I'm aiming for 700 likes._

 _HazelOrbz: Wow. That's a lot. Good luck._

 _ShadowxStar: I'm actually not that far away. I'm at 694 right now._

694?! Her eyes nearly budged out of their sockets. She double-clicked his profile, and sure enough, the blue numbers below his name flashed 694. It was definitely a lot, considering how new the game, GAKUEN ALICE, was. Because of its novelty, it was a small community. The beta trial had only ended a month ago, and no one seemed interested in things other than leveling to 100, which was the current maximum level. MIkan glanced at her own profile in sadness, the numbers reading only 15 likes.

Sighing in envy, she went back to ShadowxStar's profile and clicked the green arrow next to the numbers, upping it to 695.

 _-HazelOrbz raised ShadowxStar's likes-_

 _HazelOrbz: Omg you have so many likes. How do you do it?_

 _-ShadowxStar raised HazelOrbz's likes-_

 _ShadowxStar: Haha thanks. And I just trade likes and stuff :D Just like what I did with you~_

 _ShadowxStar: Oh, and I did quests that give you Likes too._

 _HazelOrbz: Ahh I see. I should do that more often._

 _ShadowxStar: Haha gl~_

 _HazelOrbz: Thanks, you too!_

The character jumped off the platform and disappeared when he touched the portal. However, seconds after he left, a red box blinked back at Mikan, reading: ShadowxStar wants to be your friend. Accept buddy request?

She instantly pressed the yes button. Her happy expression then turned amused when she saw a green-colored text invading the general chatbox.

 _Flame: What are you doing?_

 _Flame: You're not talking in buddy chat._

 _HazelOrbz: Hm? Mr. Hotshot is personally whispering to me now?_

 _Flame: Please. Flatter yourself._

 _HazelOrbz: I will._

 _Flame: ..._

 _HazelOrbz: ..._

 _Flame: Wanna do Hell-mode boss runs with me?_

 _Flame: If not, I'm going to sleep._

Her fingers typed but immediately stopped in the middle when her stomach growled loudly. Her eyes flickered to the clock, which read 7:03 PM.

 _HazelOrbz: I wannnttt to. But I'm hungry._

 _Flame: Go eat, noob._

 _HazelOrbz: I wanna see what Hell-mode is like though..._

 _Flame: Eat. It's so late._

 _Flame: And it's too pro for you._

 _HazelOrbz: It's 7?_

 _HazelOrbz: And wow. Wow._

 _Flame: Oh yea, it's 10 here._

 _HazelOrbz: Ah, I forgot too. Time zones._

 _HazelOrbz: Don't you have class tomorrow?_

 _Flame: Starts late._

 _Flame: How about you?_

 _HazelOrbz: School starts next week._

 _Flame: Oh._

 _HazelOrbz: You should go to sleep still._

 _Flame: Go eat first._

 _HazelOrbz: ..._

 _HazelOrbz: :c fine. I'm gonna go eat._

 _Flame: Have fun._

 _HazelOrbz: Pftt._

Mikan reluctantly got up from the computer screen and hobbled to the door, taking one last glance at the faraway chatbox. Something moved, but she sighed and opened the door, heading into the kitchen. She boiled some water and poured it into an instant udon cup, covering it for a few minutes before releasing the heated cap.

With a half-expectant heart, she brought her simple dinner over to the computer and frowned, clicking the buddy list. Flame wasn't on her list of online friends. Instead, when she clicked 'Reveal Online and Offline Buddies,' his name popped up in grey in contrast to the surrounding blue names.

She huffed a small sigh of disappointment. He really did go to sleep.

Mikan scrolled up her chatbox, only to see a spam of green texts from Flame that she missed while preparing dinner. Slurping her noodles, she read them while smiling.

 _Flame: Why pft?_

 _Flame: ..._

 _Flame: Are you eating right now?_

 _Flame: Of course you are. Idk why I asked._

 _Flame: You look worse with that blue aura._

 _Flame: Noob._

 _Flame: You must've really wanted the set effect._

 _Flame: Could've gotten it easily through Hell-mode, nub._

 _Flame: ...Gratz btw._

Mikan choked a little on her udon. After chugging down some soup, she sighed and grinned like an idiot. Finally, she got that 'Gratz.'

However, when she read on, her heart fluttered a bit.

 _-Flame raised HazelOrbz's likes-_

 _Flame: Good night, Hazel._

 _-Flame is offline-_

* * *

 **Sort of a Drabble that I wrote haha~ Yeahhhh. I think I should go to sleep. It's literally 1 AM right now. Night guys C:**

 **-blessifier**


	2. Chapter 2

**Sorry if this chapter may seem boring and long! I just wanted an introduction since I thought the first chapter seemed a little forward in action. Anyways, thanks for the support guys! I got so excited when I saw eight reviews, six favs, and fourteen follows (even though this really was a drabble) :D I don't think this chapter will be likeable though aha...**

 ****This is how Mikan finds the game, GAKUEN ALICE, so it goes back in time!***

 **Disclaimer (if anyone does this anymore): I do not and _will not_ ever own Gakuen Alice.**

* * *

 **Chapter 2**

How did this all begin?

Mikan wasn't much of a gamer herself. In fact, she wasn't anything close to a gamer. She'd never thought she'd be a person who stuck to the computer screen for almost the entire day. Computer potatoes, she used to call them.

And now she became one herself.

It was pretty much the first week of summer when she had attended physics class, listening to the teacher eagerly drone on about formulas and how they applied to real life. She would fall asleep for four hours, walk home, do the homework, come back the next day, and repeat.

Mikan regretted how she planned out her last summer of high school. It was boring.

But it was only a few days later that the physics teacher called in, announcing that he had broken his leg and required a surgical operation. A substitute was called in, but because of his record, he wasn't allowed to stay; eventually her school announced the cancellation of the physics course and dropped everyone out. To some, it was shock and dismay; others, it was the true beginning of their summer as they happily walked out of the classroom.

Now Mikan was free with nothing to do. All of her friends had gone on family vacations, and her own parents were gone on business trips.

She slept, ate, and completed summer homework.

One day, however, (it was a beautiful yet scorching Thursday afternoon) when she was scrolling through the latest news, an intrinsic ad popped up in the corner.

 _GAKUEN ALICE, MMORPG game! Join in on the fun!_

MMORPG game? She blinked a couple of times, immediately drawn to the ad rather than the political article.

A game?

MMORPG?

Mikan then blinked again, suddenly focusing the art style that was shown in the ad. It was cute...anime-ish...and likeable to her tastes.

Out of curiosity, Mikan clicked on a new tab and entered the name, _Gakuen Alice_ , into the Google search bar. She pressed the first link that came up and was redirected to a fancy website. Characters decorated the borders, and updates of the game were posted in the center. A community and a Facebook tab were to the right. And right below it were names (she guessed they were players' names) that were ranked. Only the first five popped up.

 _1\. Flame - Level 91 - Duelist_

 _2\. xKirito - Level 89 - Duelist_

 _3\. RuPyon - Level 88 - Guardian_

 _4\. TobyIllusion - Level 80 - Sorcerer_

 _5\. IloveKrab - Level 80 - Necromancer_

And only the picture of the first-ranked person, Flame, showed, depicting an avatar dressed in a black overall paired with a dark, wind-swept cape. He had tousled, jet-black hair as a smiling cat mask covered his face. In his hands were two gigantic swords, both heavily baroque on red-black-white designs.

His name was much more original than the other duelist's, xKirito, Mikan thought as she scrolled back up.

Now her attention was drawn to the giant red button, reading _Download_. Something inside her moved her mouse on top of it.

.

She really wanted to try this game for some reason. Not because she wanted to look as cool as the Flame character...

.

Ok, so maybe she did, she sheepishly admitted to herself.

.

She had never tried gaming before too...She just remembered all the warnings her parents had given her. It was like a drug addiction, they had said. It was a waste of time.

.

Maybe she'll be turned off?

.

But if this game was really good, she might get addicted to it...her grades might be affected for senior year...

.

.

"Oh what the hell," Mikan muttered.

She clicked on it.

 **OuO**

"Are you serious?" she exclaimed, watching the bar load on the new pop-up window.

The file had finally finished installing after one hour. Just as she was about to celebrate, something new popped up, reading PATCH files, 0%.

"And I was getting so excited too," Mikan muttered.

 **OuO**

Mikan hobbled back, her hands filled with random dishes she cooked while she had waited in the remaining hour. She almost dropped them when she saw a new window pop up in front of the PATCH, but to her relief, it read, 'Installation now complete.'

Without a moment's delay, she flew into her chair, set the dishes aside, and double-clicked the new icon set on her desktop; it was designed with one of the game's characters: a cool-looking girl with a purple ponytail and icy-blue eyes.

Suddenly, her screen turned pitch-black. After a few seconds, it flashed into a bright screen, and words faded in, reading _GAKUEN ALICE 2015._ She started to click her screen randomly, in hopes of skipping the introduction.

Only the title however was skipped, and she groaned when she saw a mandatory video for new players begin.

After about eight screenplays introducing each character in GAKUEN ALICE, Mikan landed on a server page (and finished her lunch). Two worlds were open to her choice: Prometheus and Kronos.

Her mind flashed back to the number one player on the rankings list.

Flame.

He would have chosen Prometheus if he was some pyro-fanatic, right?

.

Mikan obviously didn't know whoever played his character, but she knew she just wanted a chance to see the legendary number one of this game. Maybe he was just one of the stereotypical couch potatoes huddled in his room all day at the computer.

.

But really, who was she to judge this Flame person?

The brunette sighed when she looked at her own surroundings: a dark room with piles of dishes stacked on her desk. Maybe she wasn't any different from him.

She clicked on Prometheus server and was directly transferred to a character-design window, where she spent almost twenty minutes perfecting the way her avatar looked: blue long hair, fair skin, and cat-like hazel eyes. After about another five minutes deciding between the playful-yellow or the regal-blue outfit, she went with the latter and paused at her name creation.

 _Mikan_ , she typed.

 _-Sorry, this name is taken-_

The brunette growled, even though she wasn't surprised. Someone had good taste. Her forehead furrowed into wrinkles before she ended up tying again.

 _Hazel._

 _-Sorry, this name is taken-_

 _Kittykat_

 _-Sorry, this name is taken-_

After about another five hundred " _-Sorry, this name is taken-"_ she ended up with _HazelOrbz_. Something about _HazelOrbs_ seemed too simple to her (not to mention, it might've been taken), so she decided to replace the "S" with a "Z". After nodding in agreement with herself, she clicked OK.

The screen suddenly flew into a direct battle. A masked man stood in the center as his aura flamed a purple glow. And not to her surprise at all, eight characters with different weapons surrounded him, each with a determined look to defeat the mysterious middle-man. She whistled when the sky turned dark and dramatic lightning flashed in the background, not to mention the equally-dramatic music paired up with the scenario.

 _Which hero shall you choose to defeat Persona, the ultimate evil?_ A dialogue planted itself at the top.

Mikan snorted at the cheesy line.

At least the antagonist's name sounded kind of cool.

She pressed the arrow between each character, oo-ing and ah-ing at the skills each class demonstrated when she landed on them. The brunette went back to the top to look at the stats and descriptions.

The first one was a duelist, as the Flame person was.

 _Fast and deadly with critical hits, a duelist places itself as the top attacker. A mountain of combos remain at his hands, waiting to be unleashed onto his ultimate foes-_

Nope. Mikan clicked past the duelist. As cool as the character looked, she was ultimately drawn back by the close range the duelist had, not to also mention the arthritis the combo-smashes were waiting to give to her fingers.

The next one read brawler as the white-haired avatar wiped and slashed the air with his wolverine-like weapon. Mikan however didn't bother with the description since she knew it would be a close-ranged character with that type of weapon.

Ronin, the third class read. A beautiful girl with a long, purple ponytail elegantly swung a sword. It hit Mikan that it was the same character as the icon for GAKUEN ALICE. Her weapon resembled a katana, just fancier and more heavy-duty. Out of curiosity and awe for the character, Mikan read the description.

 _Through clashing blades with opponents, wielders of the Tachi are able to raise their soulblade and then unleash an immeasurable power in the midst of battle; cutting down all obstacles and creating a path to victory..._

"Wow," Mikan gaped, admiring the girl.

She almost clicked CREATE when her eyes fell to the _Melee_ (hand-to-hand combat, in other words) label the Ronin had. She sighed disappointingly. Almost reluctantly, Mikan pressed the arrow to move onto the next.

She passed through the next five: Gunslinger, Guardian, Necromancer, Archer, Sorcerer, and Bard.

First, Mikan cancelled out guardian. As much as she was attracted to its well-built defense, it seemed hard to move around in. She wanted something lighter.

An archer was too light for her as well as the gunslinger (though it was a bit tanker). She now wanted something a bit heavier. Her lips pressed together into a line. Maybe a healer would be nice to help around in? Even though bards have low defense, their healing might be useful.

Her arrow landed back on Bard as the cute, tiny-built avatar danced her fingers across a harp that was apparently her weapon. Instantly, green swirls flew and wrapped themselves around herself and the other classes.

It would seem nice since she was new to the game anyways. The brunette felt a bit bad for not looking at necromancer or sorcerer, but (as she watched the clock) Mikan had already spent three hours preparing her avatar. She hastily clicked CREATE and the screen flashed black.

 _For the sake of their world, the eight heroes battled the infamous Persona..._ the white text dramatically began.

Mikan frowned and held down the 'Enter' button, watching the texts quickly fly by.

A few more videos popped up too, but the brunette managed to skip them after discovering that the 'Esc' button did the trick.

"...Ughh," she groaned, face-planting her desk as she smashed both the 'Esc' and the 'Enter' button.

Finally, the screen flashed into a white-screen, nearly blinding Mikan's eyes. She snapped her head up and found her avatar in a quaint village.

The brunette cocked her head.

What was she supposed to do now? Maybe she shouldn't have skipped all of that.

Her left hand searched around on the keyboard, which wasn't a good idea. Her screen immediately froze for five seconds before tons of pop-ups blocked her view of everything.

Item, Quests, Equipment, Shop, Stats, World Map...She grudgingly clicked X on all of them before testing each button one by one.

For starters, Mikan knew how to move her avatar now. 'W' was forward, 'A' was left, 'D' was right, and 'S' was back. That was simple enough. Her left thumb flicked the space-bar as she watched her character jump in response.

Progress.

Eventually, she figured out the rest, realizing it wasn't hard. Literally it was 'I' for item, 'E' for equipment, and pretty much stuff that began with the first letter. It was only Stats that differed, being on the 'L' button as the period button stood for 'World Map.'

And her skills were on the 'K' button. She opened it, finding a simple beginner skill, which she dragged around her screen. She then noticed a bar that ran along the bottom of her screen, which contained the numbers 1-0, each being an empty box. Warily, she pressed on her skill again and dragged it over to the number '1', squealing in delight when the skill locked on.

Mikan pressed '1', watching her avatar blaze out green swirls from her harp. So that was her main attack for now.

Her right arm accidentally knocked her mouse to the side, but because of that, the brunette realized the mouse controlled the angle of her screen around her avatar. She moved it around again, smiling when she now saw the right view from her character.

This was definitely progress. She walked around, testing her keys and feeling comfortable in the manipulation of the keyboard and the mouse together.

Eventually, she discovered a black quest box that sat to the right of her screen, reading _Aftermath of the Battle: Talk to Beethus._

What kind of name was Beethus? She frowned while hovering her mouse over the quest. As Mikan did, the text flashed white. When she removed her mouse cursor, it went back to a grey color.

She hovered over it again and clicked the text, gasping in surprise when her character moved by itself and followed a sparkle-dusted path. Her hazel orbs followed her avatar, who eventually landed next to an old-looking man named Beethus.

A dialogue box appeared in the center of the screen with Beethus's face next to it.

 _Beethus: Hero! You've returned after so many years!_

Mikan cocked her eyebrow. She had no clue what was going on after skipping everything. Her thumb repeatedly snapped the space-bar and the dialogue moved on, eventually landing on an either 'Accept' or 'Decline' choice. She pressed 'Accept.'

The quest box changed from _Talk to Beethus_ into _Defeat 10 Walnuts, 0/10.  
_

Walnuts.

What was this game making her do?

Regardless, she did the same thing as she did previously, hovering her mouse over the quest and pressing it when it flashed white. Her character ran until it stopped in a meadow, surrounded by (indeed) walking walnuts. They passed by her as if she was no threat.

Mikan used her mouse to left-click one monster. A red arrow now pointed directly down on the walnut's head, indicating that it was the one she had chosen. She pressed '1', watching the attack flare green swirls onto the monster.

To her horror, it shrieked in response, whipped around, and _ran_ towards her avatar.

Like a madman.

"OH MY LORD!" she yelled, smashing the '1' button and holding the 'S' button down to back away from the frightening walnut.

The walnut had died after the second hit. But because Mikan had smashed her button, her avatar automatically directed its attacks towards the nearest monster, which ended up being five other walnuts. All screeched, and Mikan found herself running away from five angry walnuts. And stupidly enough, she ran through a patch of the monsters. She watched in horror as the walnuts (five now increased to twenty) chased and threw sticks at her bard, draining her HP bar down and down by high-stacking intervals of five.

Immediately, the borders of her screen flashed a dangerous red, indicating her low health bar. She instinctively kept smashing her attack button until her ring finger cried in tiredness.

Mikan expected her death, but instead her HP bar filled (despite the sticks the walnuts were throwing at her). She turned around with her mouse and saw only one walnut that remained from all of her attacks. Unsure, she clicked her attack again, watching the green swirls wrap around the monster and killing it. As it died, her HP bar went up by 29 to 39.

So her avatar could steal HP from monsters.

Cool.

However, the moment was ruined when she saw a stick fly out of nowhere and towards her avatar. There was another walnut that had remained, which Mikan didn't see.

"NO..NONONONONONO!" the brunette yelled again. She desperately clicked '1', only to see her avatar non-responsive. "WHAT?!"

Her hazel eyes then traveled to a bar below her health. _Mana 0/100_ , it read.

"NO!" she yelled for the third time. She watched helplessly as her health was knocked down to 4 and bit her lips when the walnut readied its stick for the final blow.

Well, at least she finished her quest, she thought as her eyes read _Defeat Walnuts, 10/10, completed._

A bright blue lightning however shot down on the monster, and it puttered to the ground before hitting Mikan. The brunette blinked. Someone just saved her ass in the nick of time.

She re-directed her mouse to face a male avatar, who wielded two claws.

Oh, a brawler, she thought, remembering the wolverine-like weapons. Mikan refocused her angle on the player. He had white hair that was swept to one side, and his green eyes seemed to pierce through the screen.

A dialogue box then appeared above the player's head.

 _DarkBrawlerx0: You're welcome._

She paused, staring at the screen, before she started frantically walking in different directions.

She didn't know how to chat.

Helplessly, she saw the player talk as she tried to communicate with her avatar's actions.

 _DarkBrawlerx0: ?_

 _DarkBrawlerx0: What the heck are you doing.._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: ...entertaining..._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: ..._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Wait._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: ..Don't tell me..._

Mikan watched the male avatar.

 _DarkBrawlerx0: You don't know how to chat._

The brunette smashed her space repeatedly, trying to jump as if she were nodding. She saw the guy doing a facepalm action in response.

 _DarkBrawlerx0: ...If that was a yes, just press enter._

She followed his direction, pressing enter and finding a sudden black chatbox that appeared at the bottom-left corner of her screen. Her mouth gaped open as she typed.

 _HazelOrbz: Woah_

She saw her avatar's name and her text in the chatbox, watching it float up and disappear from other players' chats.

 _HazelOrbz: WOAH..THERE'S A CHAT._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Are you new or something?_

 _HazelOrbz: Yeah!_

 _HazelOrbz: Thanks for saving me! OMG._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Ah._

 _HazelOrbz: This is so cool asdfghjklas._

Mikan pressed enter again, seeing now that the black background of the chat disappeared. Only faintly - if she squinted - could she see the words that were exchanged between her and the male.

 _DarkBrawlerx0: ok, you're welcome again._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: bye._

She blinked, watching his character run away.

 _HazelOrbz: Byeee..._

Seconds after she typed though (rather sadly), a new lavender box popped up at the bottom: DarkBrawlerx0 invites you to his guild, ALICE.

Her face stretched into a wide grin, even though she didn't exactly know what happened. Before she could say something, the brawler typed.

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Just in case if you need help._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Noob._

 _HazelOrbz: Thanks!_

The brunette cheerfully replied, watching their conversation disappear from the other chats.

But she paused.

What exactly was a noob?

* * *

 **The end of chapter 2. That was long, whew. I didn't know how to end it so...TADA~ If some of you are Aura Kingdom gamers, you may have recognized some of its controls :D And no, I don't play anymore aha. Anyways, happy reading. It's almost 1 AM again, and I needa sleep.**

 **~blessifier**


	3. Chapter 3

**Wooo I updated. AT 1 AM AGAIN. LMAO. I'm such an unhealthy child.**

 **Edit: OMG there were so many errors. DX I fixed most of them.**

* * *

 **Chapter 3**

It didn't take long for Mikan's chatbox to be filled with purple-colored texts, indicating it was from her new guild.

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Ah, you've joined._

 _TobyIllusion: Welcome to our guild!_

 _PermKitty: Welcome, girlie._

 _ICanReadYoMind: YO! Welcome!_

 _RuPyon: Welcome. C:_

Her eyes nearly shot out of her head. RuPyon?! And TobyIllusion?! Weren't they on the top five ranking list of Gakuen Alice? If Mikan could recall correctly, RuPyon was number three and TobyIllusion was number four...Her hazel eyes trailed the purple texts floating to the top as more and more replaced them.

 _RuPyon: Is she scared of us? D:_

 _PermKitty: What makes you say that?_

 _RuPyon: She's not responding :C_

Mikan's mouth formed an 'O' as she typed.

 _HazelOrbz: I'm here!_

Yet, however, the brunette realized her message was in white as her guild members' were in purple. The conversation continued as if Mikan had never replied to them.

 _TobyIllusion: Maybe she's just scared of Sumire.  
_

 _PermKitty: Hey!_

 _ICanReadYoMind: I wouldn't be surprised._

 _PermKitty: Koko, I swear..._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Oh, I know what's up. -_-_

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Hey, noob. Just press F4 on your keyboard. It directs your chats to the guild._

Silently thanking her new friend (And why was he still calling her a noob? What sort of nickname was that?), the brunette pressed F4 to see the same black chatbox pop up at the left-hand corner. However, instead of saying 'To All' next to the chatbox, it said 'To Guild.'

 _HazelOrbz: ..._

 _HazelOrbz: Hiiii..._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Knew it. Noob._

 _TobyIllusion: That's mean. Don't call her a noob._

Mikan's eyebrow immediately quirked upward. She had been curious about it. Because he called her that out of nowhere, she thought it was some kind of nice nickname. Now after seeing TobyIllusion's message, she really doubted it was something good.

 _HazelOrbz: ...What's a noob?_

 _PermKitty: Er._

 _ICanReadYoMind: It's a rather derogatory term..._

 _ICanReadYoMind: for people who have no hopes in doing anything well, I guess._

The brunette's jaw immediately dropped to the floor. People who have no hopes in doing anything _well_?! Well, whoever this DarkBrawlerx0 person was, she was going to slap him good.

After a few minutes of confirming the definition on urban dictionary, she angrily clicked back to the game.

 _HazelOrbz: What the heck?!_

 _HazelOrbz: Dark, you are a jerk! And I thought you were nice!_

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Who said I was nice?_

 _TobyIllusion: Well, that's Natsume for you... ^^;_

 _TobyIllusion: Oh by the way, what's your name, HazelOrbz?_

 _TobyIllusion: I'm Tobito._

 _HazelOrbz: I'm Mikan. Nice to meet you, Tobito!_

 _HazelOrbz: ANYWAYS, NATSUME._

 _HazelOrbz: You've officially irritated me!_

 _HazelOrbz: Congratulations!_

 _HazelOrbz: I would quit the guild to avoid your stupid avatar, but everyone else here is nice!_

 _HazelOrbz: Like Tobito! ^_

 _TobyIllusion: ^^;_

 _ILoveKrab: Can you guys stop spamming the guild chat?_

 _ILoveKrab: It's irritating._

 _ILoveKrab: If I get anymore disruptions, I'm going to charge each of you a million gold coins._

Immediately, the brunette gulped at the message. She didn't mean to be annoying.

And what's more, of course, was that Mikan immediately recognized the name, ILoveKrab, who was fifth in GAKUEN ALICE ranking. So far, she had joined a guild with three of the top five players.

Dang, what luck she had. Surprisingly, it was DarkBrawlerx0's doing.

Suddenly, RuPyon came back into the guild chat, somehow sounding entirely different than he had when he greeted Mikan.

 _RuPyon: Hotaru! :D Hi!_

 _ILoveKrab: What do you want?_

 _RuPyon: ..._

 _RuPyon: Wanted to say hiii...I haven't talked to you in forever~_

 _ILoveKrab: If that's all, I'm going to continue bossing._

 _ILoveKrab: I'm going to out-level you._

 _ILoveKrab: And Tobito._

 _RuPyon: ...Ok. :C_

 _ICanReadYoMind: Hotaru._

 _ _ICanReadYoMind_ : The typical Ice Queen._

The brunette couldn't help but smile.

 _ICanReadYoMind: Anyways, since Mikan seems super new to this game..._

 _ICanReadYoMind: You should help her out, Natsume._

 _HazelOrbz: WHAT?!_

 _DarkBrawlerx0: What._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Why should I?_

 _ICanReadYoMind: Dude, she's one of us now. Comee onn._

 _ICanReadYoMind: She's your guildiee_

 _ICanReadYoMind: And you invited her anyways._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: So now, she's my responsibility?_

 _HazelOrbz: Wow. I feel loved.  
_

 _ICanReadYoMind: Sure Natsume, if you want to think of it like that._

 _ICanReadYoMind: Besides, your brawler is around her level. Just help her out._

 _HazelOrbz: :C_

 _DarkBrawlerx0: I was planning to spend only a day on brawler._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: I need to get my duelist high enough so the other duelist can't surpass me._

 _RuPyon: Natsume, there's literally_

 _RuPyon: 20 billion EXP in difference between you and that guy._

Mikan's face paled. Twenty billion EXP? She glanced at how much the walnut monsters gave her.

Ten EXP.

 _RuPyon: You have enough time._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: ...  
_

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Fine._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: But if he surpasses me, all of you are going to help me train._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: No matter what._

Even though it was virtual, Mikan could feel the guild grow nervously cold. It was a few long minutes of silence before ICanReadYoMind (known as Koko, as Mikan watched from the chat) decided to cut to the chase.

 _ICanReadYoMind: Well, that's been settled._

 _ICanReadYoMind: Have fun, Mikan!_

 _HazelOrbz: Why._

To her dread, a familiar-looking brawler appeared, running and halting just a few inches before her avatar.

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Press F1 to go back 'To all' chat._

She pressed it. It was like he always knew what she wanted to ask.

 _HazelOrbz: You don't have to do this._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: You can't even survive these walnut monsters._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Just follow whatever I'm doing._

 _HazelOrbz: Ok..._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: ...Anyways, accept this._

A box appeared, similar to the guild invitation Natsume had sent to her. Instead of it being purple for guild however, it was pink and read 'DarkBrawlerx0 wants to invite you to his party.' Next to the dialogue was either an O or an X.

She hesitantly pressed 'O', seeing how Natsume's HP and mana now appeared below her own on the upper left hand corner.

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Follow._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: And don't be slow_.

Mikan watched the brawler run back the way he came. Sighing, she placed her hands on the keyboard and the mouse and began following her guildmate.

 _HazelOrbz: Are we going to do quests?_

 _DarkBrawlerx0: No, we're going to grind in dungeons._

Grind? As in grinding radishes? She wasn't quite sure.

 _HazelOrbz: What's_

 _DarkBrawlerx0: If you ask what grinding is, I swear..._

The brunette didn't type anything as she trailed behind the impatient brawler. For some reason, she could hear Natsume sigh in annoyance.

 **OuO**

 _HazelOrbz: Gotchuuu!_

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Bind_

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Now._

 _HazelOrbz: Dude, I gotchuuu._

Mikan pressed '7', observing how yellow chains floated from her harp and down onto the boss. The three-headed Cerberus shrieked but stayed in place. As she drummed out musical notes that whacked the monster, Natsume clawed at the boss, delivering blows five times more effective than Mikan's.

Eventually, it died after another round of Mikan's binds and Natsume's cascade of attacks. A small yellow light erupted from both their avatars, indicating they had leveled up.

- _HazelOrbz is now Level 22-_

 _-DarkBrawlerx0 is now Level 23-_

 _TobyIllusion: Congratz, you two!_

 _ICanReadYoMind: Gz_

 _PermKitty: Gz~_

She watched the guild fill up her chatbox as she thanked them. Natsume however remained silent.

After a few seconds, he finally responded, although it was 'To All' rather than 'To Guild.'

 _DarkBrawlerx0: One more dungeon. It can probably get us up three levels._

 _HazelOrbz: Oh, ok._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: You know the procedure._

 _HazelOrbz: Yep!_

They both hopped over to the dungeon's exit and continued toward another one that glowed red. As they passed by portals, Mikan used the advantage of arriving first to buff her passive skills. A yellow shield covered the two avatars as their attack range increased by double.

When the two entered, Mikan stood to the side while Natsume charged headfirst into the mob of monsters. She quickly healed the male brawler, but occasionally, she would stun a couple of the mobs, just to get an extra bit of EXP. It continued for six more stages.

As much as Mikan hated to admit it, she worked well with Natsume. At first, it was hard since she had no clue what she was doing. But after short lectures given by Natsume and the first-hand dungeon experience he had given to her, she was already feeling natural at the game.

After they defeated the boss, they stood around, awkwardly hopping on the rock crevices. She picked up a necklace, which to her delight, was better than her old one. Mikan immediately equipped it and hammered her old one into blue fragments. She wasn't sure why, but Natsume told her to do it. So whatever.

The brunette felt slight disappointment when she saw his message.

 _DarkBrawlerx0: I'm going to go train my duelist now._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Thanks for the company._

 _HazelOrbz: You too..._

 _HazelOrbz: Is your other character in the guild?_

She could've sworn she heard a snort from him.

 _DarkBrawlerx0: He's the leader of the guild, you noob._

 _HazelOrbz: Woah, really?_

 _HazelOrbz: And you mean NEWB, not NOOB._

Mikan was beginning to associate herself with game terminology, thanks to her new guild mates and Natsume.

 _DarkBrawlerx0: ..._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Well, I'll see you shortly._

 _DarkBrawlerx0: Be right back, logging._

 _-DarkBrawlerx0 has left the party-_

 _-DarkBrawlerx0 is offline-_

She huffed a small sigh, twisting off a cap and pressing the tip of the water bottle to her parched lips.

He was the leader of the guild? That definitely was surprising.

She was about to take another swig of her water when something caught her off-guard. She rubbed her eyes. That couldn't possibly be that name going online.

Perhaps, it was a glitch his in-game name appeared. That's right, a glitch.

The guild chat however warmly welcomed him back, using the name, Natsume.

He was the guild leader.

He was a duelist.

He was 20 billion EXP in front of whoever the other duelist was.

Of course.

So it really was him.

She gulped. She had spent the last four hours not knowing who Natsume was until now.

This guild didn't have three of the top five players; it had _four_ of the top five.

And what's most of all was that he was number one of GAKUEN ALICE.

Flame.


	4. Chapter 4

**-Bathes in the reviews- LOL jk, but I love you guys so much C: Especially the people who are really updated on this story hehe. Thanks for the support~ I've decided to release this (rather short) chapter as an extension of my gratitude (I sound like an old man). I reread it though, and it was meh. Sorry D:**

 **Anyways enjoy~**

* * *

 **Chapter 4**

He was Flame.

He was Natsume.

He was DarkBrawlerx0.

So DarkBrawlerx0 was Natsume...as Natsume was Flame.

Meaning DarkBrawlerx0 was Flame.

Oh, mother of pearl. Mikan sat at her desk, looking quite stiff as her eyes trailed the 'welcome back' messages sent to Natsume.

 _PermKitty: Omg, welcome back Natsume!_

 _TobyIllusion: Wb!_

 _RuPyon: Wb. C:_

 _ICanReadYoMind: Finally on your duelist, Natsume._

 _ICanReadYoMind: Carry me through hell-mode dungeons, please._

 _Flame: Thanks._

 _Flame: And no, Koko._

 _ICanReadYoMind: Why._

 _Flame: In a dungeon at the moment._

 _ICanReadYoMind: Oh, ok._

She could've sworn a bug could fly into her mouth at any moment. Was Natsume really Flame, the number one player of Gakuen Alice? Maybe she had mistaken his name. Maybe he replaced the lowercase "L" in Flame with an uppercase "I".

However the next thing that happened shut down her theory.

 _-Flame is now Level 92-_

 _PermKitty: Gratz, champion._

 _TobyIllusion: Wow, gratz. You're way ahead of xKirito.  
_

 _RuPyon: Congratz, Natsume C:_

 _ICanReadYoMind: Dang._

 _ICanReadYoMind: Gz boy.  
_

 _ICanReadYoMind: Though I call hacks on that._

 _ILoveKrab: Stop leveling._

 _ICanReadYoMind: How do you level so fast?_

 _Flame: I don't know._

 _Flame: Pro right here.  
_

 _HazelOrbz: ..._

 _HazelOrbz: Omg_

 _Flame: What._

 _HazelOrbz: Are you really Flame?_

 _Flame: . . ._

 _Flame: That's a stupid question._

 _Flame: Noob._

That made her gap even more.

 _HazelOrbz: ..._

 _HazelOrbz: Newb*_

 _Flame: ._

The brunette hesitated a little before asking again.

 _HazelOrbz: ...Are you really Natsume?_

 _Flame: -_-_

 _Flame: Yes, you noob._

 _PermKitty: She's just shocked pft._

 _PermKitty: I mean, who wouldn't be?_

 _PermKitty: Number one player online. In our guild._

 _TobyIllusion: Newb* :D_

 _Flame: -_-_

Mikan scratched her head a little, pressing her fingers against her temples. She had just spent the past four hours leveling her _newb_ with the number-one player of this game. And even though it was a game, it felt surreal.

 _Flame: I don't see what the big deal is._

 _HazelOrbz: ..._

 _ICanReadYoMind: ^_

 _ICanReadYoMind: Understatement of the year._

 _Flame: Whatever._

 _Flame: Dungeon time._

 _TobyIllusion: ^^;_

 _HazelOrbz: Well, that was definitely surprising for me._

 _RuPyon: Hahah_

 _RuPyon: Anyways Mikan,_

 _RuPyon: We all started as newbs when we made this guild C:_

 _RuPyon: So don't feel intimidated~_

 _ICanReadYoMind: And now, four of us are the pro-est gamers._

 _ILoveKrab: Except for you, Koko._

 _ILoveKrab: Even Sumire's number thirty-six._

 _ICanReadYoMind: ..._

 _HazelOrbz: Oh, wow. :O_

 _PermKitty: Guys, I digress, but_

 _PermKitty: Want to call later for the usual routine?_

 _ICanReadYoMind: For the party dungeons?_

 _PermKitty: Yea._

 _ICanReadYoMind: Sure, baby._

 _PermKitty: I swear I'm going to punch you, Koko._

 _ICanReadYoMind: Why._

 _PermKitty: -sigh-_

 _PermKitty: Anyways do you have a Skype, Mikan?_

She paused for a few minutes, watching PermKitty's (Mikan forgot her name) request sit there. The brunette did have one, but she never really used it.

 _HazelOrbz: I doo, but I never use it.._

 _PermKitty: Just add us._

 _ICanReadYoMind: ^ Peer pressure._

 _PermKitty: Go away, Koko._

 _ICanReadYoMind: Why, Sumire._

Oh yea, her name was Sumire, Mikan noted.

While the two bickered, Mikan minimized the game screen and logged onto her Skype (after two tries of guessing her password). She had temporarily forgot about the whole Natsume-is-a-fricking-pro incident. She clicked on her profile, memorized her Skype username, and pressed back to the game, where Sumire and Koko were still talking.

 _ICanReadYoMind: And I  
_

 _ICanReadYoMind: will always.  
_

 _PermKitty: Stop._

 _ICanReadYoMind: Love You.  
_

 _PermKitty: Omg._

 _ICanReadYoMind: You._

 _ICanReadYoMind: My darling.  
_

 _ICanReadYoMind: I'll always..._

 _ICanReadYoMind: I'll always.  
_

 _ICanReadYoMind: Love._

 _ILoveKrab: Shut up, Koko._

 _ICanReadYoMind: ok._

 _PermKitty: Thank you, Hotaru._

Mikan couldn't help but snort in laughter. The notorious Ice Queen had shut the boy in less than two seconds. She chuckled again before typing in the guild chat.

 _HazelOrbz: If you still want my Skype..._

 _HazelOrbz: It's MikiOrange**_

 _TobyIllusion: That's a cute username :D_

 _HazelOrbz: Aha, thanks Tobito :D_

 _PermKitty: Added you._

Reading Sumire's message, she immediately went back to her Skype window and shockingly saw five pending requests. She read them as they each indicated their names. First one was obviously from Sumire. Second was from Tobito. Third was from Koko. Fourth was weirdly from RuPyon (she had discovered his name was Ruka from his Skype), who didn't talk too much in the chat today. And fifth was shockingly from the Ice Queen, Hotaru. Mikan was a bit intimidated by her, but nonetheless, she accepted all of them.

To her biggest disappointment though, there was no sixth request.

Natsume never sent her one.

Well...he still might be in the dungeon. He wasn't talking in guild chat...

She couldn't help but feel slightly saddened as she returned to Gakuen Alice. She had actually expected his request the most.

.

.

Wait, what?

Mikan slapped her cheeks with her hand. Why did she think that? It's not a big deal that he didn't send her one. In fact, it was downright crazy that he was even associated with her. The most experienced gamer in Gakuen Alice with a first-time player like her was just outright weird.

Yeah.

It wasn't a big deal. She smiled brightly as she teleported to the nearest town. A purple text popped up, showing it was from Sumire.

 _PermKitty: We're going to call in five minutes._

 _PermKitty: Anyone disagree?_

 _ICanReadYoMind: No.  
_

 _RuPyon: Nope~_

 _ILoveKrab: Just finished dungeon._

 _ILoveKrab: I can call._

 _TobyIllusion: I'm free_

 _TobyIllusion: Wait,_

 _TobyIllusion: is Mikan going to join our call? :o_

She froze a little. Was she going to join their call? This was literally her first day of gaming.

And she had met these guys for less than a day.

 _PermKitty: Well, I asked her Skype for a reason._

 _HazelOrbz: Actually, it's getting late_

 _HazelOrbz: I'm going to get off :D_

 _TobyIllusion: Aww_

 _RuPyon: Maybe next time, Mikan. C:_

 _HazelOrbz: Yeah :D_

 _ICanReadYoMind: I really wanted to hear Mikan's voice._

 _PermKitty: Go away, Koko._

 _ICanReadYoMind: Why._

 _HazelOrbz: haha :P_

 _HazelOrbz: Well see you guys tomorrow!_

 _PermKitty: Night, girl._

 _ILoveKrab: A responsible child._

 _ICanReadYoMind: Bye, MikiOrange**._

 _TobyIllusion: Sleep tight, Mikan!_

 _RuPyon: Night, Mikan C:_

She logged off after Ruka's message, trying to not let Natsume's absence in the chat bother her. After a few minutes of drinking from her water bottle and playing rounds of Minesweeper, she felt her eyelids droop from tiredness. The clock's green light read 12:34 A.M.

Goodness gracious. She had always been asleep before 11 P.M. This was new.

As she clicked out of Minesweeper, she noticed her Skype icon shine yellow with one notification. She had expected it to be from one of her contacts.

.

However it wasn't. Her hazel eyes widened.

Mikan now saw a new pending request sitting at the top from five minutes ago. She read the small, simple message with a hint of smile.

 _'It's Natsume... Night, noob.'_

"This guy..." the brunette mumbled. She pressed accept and went straight to bed, grinning like an idiot.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: gonna pass out from lack of sleep. Anyways, I haven't been updating because of college applications. Sorry, but I'm not, because I finished UC applications yayy! Jkay, sorry though. Anyways enjoy.**

 **I know that I said I would be updating World Is Beautiful, but I received more requests for this. Gonna pass out, so night guys! I had no time to edit this, gg.**

* * *

 **Chapter 5**

 _-HazelOrbz is now Level 45-_

 _-Guild level is now level 7-_

 _ICanReadYoMind: YEEAAAA_

 _IcanReadYoMind: WHOS THE CHAMPION?!_

 _ICanReadYoMind: WE AREEEE_

 _PermKitty: Quiet Koko._

 _PermKitty: Anyways, gratz Mikan XOXO_

 _HazelOrbz: Thanks Sumire!_

 _HazelOrbz: and haha at Koko._

 _TobyIllusion: Who wants to visit our new guild room?_

 _HazelOrbz: Me!_

 _PermKitty: Yayy!_

 _ILoveKrab: I guess a look can't hurt._

Upon reaching Level 7, the entitlements bestowed for the guild were more potions, more attack buffs, and a guild hall reserved just for the specified guild. Mikan couldn't help but squeal in excitement as she hopped around the room like a crazed woman.

 _ICanReadYoMind: And right when Mikan reached Level 45_

 _ICanReadYoMind: sadfaowiojnfeas_

 _ICanReadYoMind: What secondary class are u gonna pick, Mikan?!_

 _HazelOrbz: Secondary class?_

 _RuPyon: When a character reaches Level 45, he or she is allowed to choose another job to main. C:_

 _RuPyon: It's just any other class, like Necromancer and Guardian._

 _HazelOrbz: Ooooh, I see._

 _HazelOrbz: What should I pick?_

 _ICanReadYoMind: Tobyyy, where art thoouuu?_

 _TobyIllusion: What?_

 _ICanReadYoMind: ^_

 _TobyIllusion: Oh!_

 _TobyIllusion: Okay_

 _TobyIllusion: Since you're a Bard, Mikan,_

 _TobyIllusion: you would either want to go with Guardian or Sorcerer._

 _TobyIllusion: Go with a Guardian subclass if you want to stay as a support. High defense._

 _TobyIllusion: If you want to be able to solo, go with Sorcerer. They have excellent combos and damage-effect in soloing dungeons._

 _HazelOrbz: :O Thank you so much!_

 _PermKitty: ..._

 _PermKitty: Wow._

 _TobyIllusion: Haha you're welcome, Mikan._

 _ICanReadYoMind: Leave it to Tobito._

 _ICanReadYoMind: He's extremely responsible in calculating information._

 _ILoveKrab: ...Koko._

 _ICanReadYoMind: Sepfond to Hotaru, of course!_

 _ICanReadYoMind: Second*_

 _ILoveKrab: Thought so._

Mikan snorted and pealed in laughter. Even though it has been a week since she joined the guild, she had already accustomed herself to the habits of the guild members. She sighed in enjoyment and cuddled into her blanket, watching the chat fly by and wondering about her subclass.

Would she want to support others, or would she want to solo dungeons?

Her cheeks warmed when a choice and the reason became clear in her heart. Even reaching level 45 in the span of a week, she was still far from the others in terms of skill and level. Mikan wanted to be as powerful as them, even with the time shortage.

 _HazelOrbz: I want Sorcerer as my subclass then._

 _ICanReadYoMind: Danggg, bard and sorcerer combination. That's pretty op._

 _HazelOrbz: Op?_

 _PermKitty: Overpowered._

 _HazelOrbz: Why?_

 _PermKitty: They just have really good combination skills in GA._

 _PermKitty: People like it,_

 _PermKitty: but most don't like to start out with Bard_

 _PermKitty: because they're too squishy._

 _TobyIllusion: Yeah_

 _HazelOrbz: :o squishy...?_

 _PermKitty: you know...like weak and can easily die, lol_

 _ICanReadYoMind: Anyways_

 _ICanReadYoMind: can we please celebrate this coincidence?!_

 _ICanReadYoMind: Like our guild leveling and Mikan becoming level 45 at the same time_

 _PermKitty: What do we do then?_

 _ICanReadYoMind: Make Sumire my girlfriend_

 _PermKitty: ..._

 _PermKitty: I'll smash your head out the door._

 _ICanReadYoMind: Whyyyyyyyyyyyyy_

 _TobyIllusion: Actually, what should we do? o.o_

 _ICanReadYoMind: :c_

 _PermKitty: I say we do something to Mikan._

 _PermKitty: XD_

 _HazelOrbz: ..._

 _HazelOrbz: I thought we were friends, Sumire..._

 _PermKitty: hehe sorry Mikan_

 _PermKitty: So what's the first suggestion?_

 _ICanReadYoMind: Hmm..._

 _Flame: Flash her panties._

 _TobyIllusion: O_O_

 _ICanReadYoMind: WOAHH_

 _ICanReadYoMind: DAYUM NATSUME LOOOOL_

 _PermKitty: LOLOLOLOLOL_

 _HazelOrbz: WHAT THE HELLL, NATSUME_

 _HazelOrbz: AND WHEN DID YOU GET HERE?!_

 _Flame: Awhile ago._

 _HazelOrbz: WDFFF_

 _HazelOrbz: NOT COOL THO._

 _PermKitty: omg my stomach was dying._

 _ICanReadYoMind: Good one, Natsume HAHA_

 _PermKitty: LOOOL_

 _ILoveKrab: Ahem..._

 _ILoveKrab: I shall interrupt you imbeciles._

 _ILoveKrab: My suggestion is to have Mikan Skype-call us._

 _PermKitty: ooooooo_

 _PermKitty: I actually support that_

 _RuPyon: Me too C:_

 _TobyIllusion: I like it!_

 _ICanReadYoMind: I would too_

 _ICanReadYoMind: but I think someone's desperate for Mikan_

 _HazelOrbz: I'll punch your lights out_

 _HazelOrbz: And Natsume's_

 _Flame: :P_

 _HazelOrbz: Anyways_

 _HazelOrbz: Can I reject both of these suggestions?_

 _PermKitty: No_

 _ICanReadYoMind: No_

 _RuPyon: Sorry Mikan hahahha_

 _HazelOrbz: You too, Ruka?!_

 _HazelOrbz: :c Tobyyyy_

 _TobyIllusion: Eh..hehhehe_

 _TobyIllusion: Sorryyy..._

 _HazelOrbz: ...NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

 _PermKitty: Ok since I feel a little bad_

 _PermKitty: Mikan, you only have to speak like...three times_

 _PermKitty: then you can stop if you want_

 _PermKitty: but you have to remain in the call for at least two hours_

 _HazelOrbz: adsfaowiefjodsifas_

 _HazelOrbz: ...fine_

 _Flame: Then..._

 _Flame: Sumire, make another group_

 _PermKitty: Why?_

 _Flame: Because_

 _Flame: She's in it._

 _PermKitty: What?_

 _Flame: -.- SHE'S in it._

 _PermKitty: OH!_

 _PermKitty: LOL_

 _PermKitty: Okay I will_

 _HazelOrbz: Who's...'she'?_

 _ICanReadYoMind: One of the most...talkative people in the entire world_

 _PermKitty: More annoying than Koko._

 _HazelOrbz: Dangg_

 _ICanReadYoMind: Yeah_

 _ICanReadYoMind: ..._

 _ICanReadYoMind: WAIT Hey!_

 _HazelOrbz: Lol sorrry xDD_

 _ICanReadYoMind: Sigh_

 _PermKitty: Lol, but she's obsessed with Natsume._

 _PermKitty: So obsessed_

 _PermKitty: that it's funny_

 _ICanReadYoMind: Yea ^_

 _Flame: ..._

 _ICanReadYoMind: But we all know he's thirsty for Mikan_

 _HazelOrbz: ..._

 _ILoveKrab: ..._

 _ILoveKrab: Well, shall we initiate the torture?_

 _HazelOrbz: Stop making it sound scary ;~;_

 _PermKitty: Lol_

 _PermKitty: alright_

 _PermKitty: Made it! GOGOGOOGOGOO_

Although she was quite troubled, Mikan hesitantly clicked out of Gakuen Alice and pouted when she saw the group chat's name. To none other's surprise, it read " _Mikan's VOICE 2015. SOMEONE RECORD PLS._ " She sighed while slurping some noodles, letting out a little hiccup that she swallowed down with some soup. Grudgingly, she heard the Skype call music and eyed the Green call button, frowning at her heart that was rapidly pattering against her rib cage.

All of a sudden, Mikan felt nervous about her voice. What if they didn't like it? Dear god, what if they _kicked_ her out of the guild because of her voice? Mikan then slapped her cheeks, disdained at her illogical thoughts.

A Skype notification blooped in the meantime.

 _Sumire: HURRY UP MIKAN! WE'RE ALL WAITING!_

 _Mikan: GEEZ OK!_

With all of her strength and will, the brunette finally clicked on the green call button.

"-AND SHE WAS LIKE NOOOOO! AND I SAID WHAT THE HECK WOMAN?!" A bright, female voice blared through the speakers once she clicked into the Skype call. Mikan stifled her laughter with her sleeve, knowing full well who the voice belonged to - at least, personality-wise.

"Is Mikan in the call yet?" Another voice came up, masculine yet soft-spoken. Her heart suddenly fluttered at the soothing voice. Who was that? Natsume? Ruka? Tobito? Or...no, it couldn't be Koko. It didn't match.

The same female voice popped in to reply. "I don't - wait, that's Mikan's Skype picture of an orange! GUYS, SHE'S IN THE CALL! MIKAN! SPEAK!" she demanded.

"...Hi, Sumire," the brunette squeaked.

There was utter silence after Mikan spoke. Her jaw dropped a little at the reaction. Was her voice really that bad to give everyone a moment of silence?

After a couple of dead seconds, another masculine voice, also soft-spoken yet clearer, came in. "M-Mikan? Was that you?"

"Yess?" she answered hesitantly, dragging on the 's'.

"Your voice is surprisingly cute, Mikan," the first male voice finally answered, relieving Mikan of all tensions. He continued, "Not like annoying cute. Just normal cute, you know?"

"Way better than Sumire's." A playful, tenor male voice joked. This time, she smiled, knowing that the voice belonged to Koko.

"Go away, Koko!" Sumire yelled, causing Mikan to laugh. "Is someone recording this by the way?" This question, however, caused Mikan to pale and to muffle her laughter.

"I'm too lazy to," Koko drawled, resulting in Sumire's release of insults at Koko.

"If I may interrupt you two imbeciles..." An icy, female voice cut through Mikan's speakers, causing her to shiver. "...may I suggest that we introduce ourselves?"

"Oh, yea sure," Koko dumbly answered. "I'm Koko, if you couldn't tell, Mikan."

"And I'm your best friend, Sumire!" Sumire declared proudly.

Mikan laughed. "Recognized you guys immediately."

"I'm Ruka. Hi Mikan," the first heavenly masculine voice answered, causing Mikan to smile.

"I'm Tobito haha." Mikan noted it was the second masculine voice - clear yet soft-spoken.

"Hey you two," she answered with a smile.

"I'm Hotaru," the icy voice rested before wisping away into nothing.

"...H-hi, Hotaru..." Mikan replied hesitantly.

"Hey, where's Natsume?" Sumire suddenly asked after a pause in the voice chat.

"I don't know. I think he's nervous because of Mikan," Koko joked.

"Like hell I'm nervous." This time, a deep masculine voice protruded in. Mikan's lips parted a bit, soaking in the richness of tone and perfection of his clear dictation. That was...Natsume's voice? Mother of God...She covered her agape mouth and blushed at her own reaction.

"It's Mister Big-shot!" Koko cheered.

"Indeed," Hotaru agreed. "It is Mister Asshole who refuses to tell us his secret methods of leveling."

"Thanks, Hotaru," Natsume answered with a hint of sarcasm.

"You are very welcome," Hotaru replied with overwhelming coldness.

"You two, get a room. There's so much sexual tension I can't stand it," Sumire snorted. Mikan's heart then plummeted to the ground. Were Hotaru and Natsume close? Was this their normal way of teasing each other?

"What the hell, Sumire?" Natsume growled.

"Just kidddinggg hehe," she chuckled.

"Because we all know you love Mikan," Koko added at the end.

Mikan's face then bloomed into a screen of red. "What the hell, Koko?" Mikan yelled.

"Who would like that noob?" Natsume snorted, causing Mikan to bristle in anger.

"Who would like you?" she retorted.

"Everyone," he answered arrogantly.

"Like hell they would!"

"Of course they would. Even if you do right now," he replied smoothly.

She tried her best in ignoring an odd shiver crawling down her spine. "Liar! Who would like a rude, pompous poophead like you?!"

"Ok I take back my previous statement," Sumire interrupted. "You and Natsume need to get a room stat."

Mikan then let out a sigh of frustration, unable to fight anymore.

"I hear that sigh of sexual frustration," Koko chimed in, causing some laughter in the chat.

"Enough with teasing our poor little Mikan," Sumire finally said, though Mikan could still hear a hint of laughter. "We should do party dungeons."

"Alright. Want to join us, Mikan?" Ruka asked.

"I might die though," she said.

"It's alright. We'll protect you. Our maximum average should only be Level 65 because of the limit," Tobito offered informatively. "Just avoid hitting monsters and focus on healing us. Should the monsters attack be ranged, just step out of the red region."

"O-okay." Mikan answered, feeling relieved at Tobito's words.

"Kay, I sent an invite to party, and Natsume sent a guild teleport. Go accept it now, guys," Sumire said before squealing in delight. "Oh my god, this is our first dungeon with Mikan!"

"This is a legendary moment in history," Koko said proudly.

"Seriously, you two," Mikan hid her smile with her sleeve. The grin disappeared though when she accepted Natsume's teleport, causing the screen to pixelate into a new surrounding of dark grass and an eerie red portal in front.

For some reason, she had a bad feeling.

"Noob. Remember to not attack and to stay close behind us." Natsume's voice rang into her head, shaking her out of a fear trance. For some odd reason, Natsume always interrupted at the right time.

"I'm not a Noob," she indignantly said.

"Whatever."

"You guys ready? I'm going to enter," Sumire said.

After six yes's, Sumire pressed something, which activated a countdown in the middle of Mikan's screen. Her hands were sweating at the sight of the numbers ticking down. The environment - as Mikan observed it more - was a swampy region with an eerie fog, showing silhouettes of distant monsters that roamed by. She bit her lips, readied her fingers on the keyboard, and nearly cancelled out of fright before something popped in the corner of her screen.

It was a Skype notification from Natsume.

 _Natsume: You'll be fine. Just do what we always did together._

 _Natsume: It's just a game anyways._

Mikan smiled at his message. She was so confused by this guy. Most of the time, he was mean, arrogant, and stubborn. Yet there were times that he could sweep her heart into the distance.

Right before the timer stopped at zero, she clicked a reply.

 _Mikan: Thanks, weirdo. C:_

* * *

The first thing she saw when they entered was a Medusa-creature that screeched an ear-splitting scream when they entered. To her horror, it swiveled its head 180 degrees to glare at Mikan.

Before either could react, Natsume stepped in front and let out a powerful slash in combination with a jump-shot. Immediately, the creature exploded into a dark, evaporating mist.

"Show-off," Koko muttered before charging ahead with a sword the length of his body. Instantly, Mikan recognized the class as Tachi.

"Woah, you're a Tachi, Koko?" she asked, envying Koko's flashy skills.

"Yeah, pretty cool, huh?"

"Please," Sumire snorted. "Any class becomes lame as soon as Koko touches it."

"I'm hurt, Sumire," he fake-cried.

"Of course," she drawled.

"Are you guys dating?" Mikan asked, suddenly causing them to sputter (she was surprised that Koko was reacting badly).

"Why would I date that dunce cap?" Sumire laughed, though it sounded shaky.

"Likewise," Koko coughed.

"Sumire and Koko know each other in real life. That's why," Ruka said as they defeated th first stage boss. "Sometimes they go to each other's houses."

"Aww that's so cute!" Mikan cooed, taking this as her chance for revenge.

"Ruka!" Sumire hissed.

"What?" he asked cluelessly. "You two told us the other day in a Skype call."

"Yeah, _Sumire_ ," Mikan added.

"Mikan," she warned.

"Yes, Sumire?" Mikan asked innocently.

"...I'll strike a deal. Both sides concede to a hiatus of teasing?"

"Deal." A smirk pulled up on Mikan's cheeks.

* * *

After fifteen minutes of fighting, the seven of them reached a spacious room. From her experiences, Mikan knew it was the final boss room.

"What is the monster, Tobito?" Hotaru snapped in.

"Uhhh, it will be..." Fast clicks of the keyboard pattered away. "...a humongous poisonous spider that flies into the center. It is versatile in far and close combat. There will be pools of purple poison, so make sure to avoid that. Don't run into its baby spider eggs, Mikan, or else it'll automatically target you."

"Okay."

Right as their conversation ended, a spider shrieked and landed with an earth-shaking thud. Eggs popped all over the map as pools of poison splattered across the ground. Koko was unfortunate enough to be drenched by poison and to run into a spider egg. In the span of two seconds, his health was reduced by eighty percent.

"What the heck?" he yelled as he swung a critical hit onto the spider's head. "Not cool!"

Mikan easily healed Koko and went back on a lookout, eyeing at Natsume, who released a tornado of daggers at the spider, effectively drawing its HP by a third. Sumire scratched at its sides (Mikan didn't know she was a brawler until now). From a distance, Tobito binded the spider and its minions into one place while Hotaru summoned skeletons to kill off egg traps and remaining minions. Ruka combated the spider with Sumire, Koko, and Natsume, often shielding them to refrain excessive damage, as Mikan healed all of them.

Easily, the spider was defeated as they gathered to divide the reward.

"Ugh I have so much equip now," Sumire complained.

"Same."

"We should just give them to Mikan, since they're her level," Koko said.

Murmurs of agreement ascended as six trade requests popped up on Mikan's screen.

"Are you sure?" she asked. "You guys can turn them into blue fragments or something."

"I have too much haha," Tobito said. "It wouldn't make a difference to me, so take them."

"Oh my gosh, don't feel bad, Mikan! In fact, I'm feeling bad that I'm throwing all this crap at you," Sumire whined.

Mikan laughed, thanking each as they sent them to her.

Like always, Natsume came last.

 _Flame: Use the ring._

She was surprised that Natsume typed privately in their trade box. It wasn't like he spoke anyway in the call, but she thanked him.

 _HazelOrbz: Thanks! I will!_

 _Flame: Only bards can use it anyway._

 _Flame: And it has a special ability, I think._

 _HazelOrbz: Really?_

 _Flame: Yeah. Try it._

The brunette gave it a try, equipping it as she placed the ring into a hot key. Immediately, a bubble surrounded her character and automatically destroyed a nearby egg.

"Woah, what's that?!" Sumire asked, awed by the skill.

"That's the first time I've seen that skill," Ruka said.

"Well, Na-" She was cut of by the words.

 _Flame: Don't tell them_.

"Oh, just got it randomly, you know," she answered with a bit of smugness. "Anyways, thanks for the party guys! I'm going off for the day."

"Noooo I wanted to tease you some more!" Sumire cried.

"Remember the deal," Mikan reminded her.

"Drats!"

"Night Miki!" Koko called out cheerfully.

After farewells, she logged off GAKUEN ALICE and hung up on Skype. Before she logged off, she entered Natsume's chat.

 _Mikan: Hey, thanks for the ring._

 _Natsume: It's not really much._

 _Mikan: I like it._

 _Natsume: :p_

 _Natsume: Are you that thankful?_

 _Mikan: Yeah. What's wrong with being thankful?_

 _Natsume: Nothing._

 _Mikan: c:_

 _Mikan: Seriously though, thanks. It boosts my stats and gives a unique skill_.

 _Mikan: I can't pay you back because I'm poor on here._

 _Natsume: Do something for me then._

 _Mikan: ..._

 _Mikan: It's not something weird right?_

 _Natsume: :p no, you noob_

 _Natsume: .._

 _Mikan: ..._

 _Mikan: what is it?_

 _Natsume: Well_

 _Natsume: I have to be the first to video-chat you._

 _Mikan: ..._

 _Mikan: Why_

 _Mikan: actually nvm._

 _Mikan: ... when is this?_

 _Natsume: Anytime next week._

 _Mikan: Oh. Okay._

 _Natsume: ...You're not going to freak out?_

 _Mikan: No_

 _Mikan: Well...a little._

 _Mikan: Uh anyway, good night Natsume._

 _Natsume: Night_.

She closed the laptop screen, shut her eyes, and let out a long sigh. It still didn't relax her jittery nerves and her lava-temperature cheeks, so she grabbed the nearest pillow and screamed everything into it.

With a smile, Mikan brushed her teeth and skipped back with a light happiness to the touch, shutting the lights before passing out into a dreamless sleep.


	6. Chapter 6

**Hehe! Two chapters in one day! One for Heroine and another for this! Enjoy!**

 **Chapter 6**

"WHATT?!" Sumire shrieked so loudly that Mikan grimaced as she pulled away from the laptop. "Y-YOU'RE TELLING ME. NATSUME...N-NATSUME MADE YOU PROMISE THAT?!"

After a few moments of hesitation, a smile curved up. "Yeah...h-he...did."

"OH MY LORD..." she gasped, breathing dramatically. Mikan could only imagine the frazzled hair of Sumire wildly waving while she was screaming. "Oh my lord...Mikan. O-M-G!"

"That is very strange. He usually acts differently - you know, like an imbecile." Hotaru's voice popped up, her chilliness slicing through Sumire's melodramatic outbreak. "An arrogant person like him typically does not involve himself around females."

"He hangs around you two," Mikan pointed out, a bit exasperated at both Sumire and Hotaru's analysis of Natsume's uncalled proposal. Only a few days ago when Mikan first Skype-called the group, Natsume had privately asked - actually, _dictated_ \- that he would be the first to video-chat Mikan. The brunette crushed her head into her pillow, her cheeks flaming red.

 _Natsume: I have to be the first to video-chat you._

The message still stood in its place, no matter how many times Mikan went back to their chat. It was still there. It wasn't a dream. It was real.

If there was a God above watching humans, she hoped with all her life that nothing would go wrong. For goodness sake, it was Natsume! ...Natsume...who was also known as Flame, currently the number one player of Gakuen Alice...

Mikan paused for a second, her mind wandering into the abyss, suddenly wishing for the sound of his beautiful, smooth, masculine voice. When she first heard it, she almost melted into a puddle of butter. What if she could hear that sound everyday?

Then, something popped into her mind. Mikan was surprised that it had never occurred in her head before. She stopped open-throated, before tuning back into the _GIRLS-ONLY_ Skype call. "Hey, have any of you seen Natsume's real face?"

"No, I wish," Sumire sighed disappointedly. "Koko and I have tried to coerce him into video-chatting us. We don't know Ruka's or Tobito's faces either... Anyways, Natsume refuses every time. Seriously."

"I've seen his Facebook," Hotaru said with no shame. "He has lots of tagged photos from his friends. But he doesn't upload them himself."

"WHAT?" Sumire yelled. Something in the background crashed as she continued. "You stalked him on Facebook?!"

"Yes."

"You _stalked_ him on Facebook," Sumire repeatedly deadpanned.

"Yes."

A moment of silence passed in the chat. Then Sumire spoke again. "Show me."

"No."

"Whyyy nott?!" she whined like a child, causing Mikan to laugh. "It's nott fairr! You got to see his face! We want some information too! Especially Miki, right?"

"S-sure..?" the brunette shrugged, and then remembered they could not see her.

"I would have shown you two. After a cheap price rate, of course." Mikan and Sumire groaned, but Hotaru continued, now with a darker tone. "However, a peasant sold me out after Natsume questioned him."

"Peasant?" They both questioned. "Who?"

"I do not break promises, so I cannot tell you two," Hotaru replied simply. "Though it provides excellent blackmailing information."

"So Sumire hasn't seen his face, while Hotaru has but can't tell..." Mikan frowned and pouted in disappointment.

"Why? What's on your mind, Miki?" Sumire asked.

"Well...don't...laugh at me, but...I'm kind of scared he'll think I'm ugly..." The brunette finished with a hint of shame in her voice, lowering her head and groaning in embarrassment. Speaking of embarrassment, why did she confess that when Hotaru - the queen of blackmail - was present?!

After only a second, she could hear Sumire chuckle and Hotaru snort.

"I thought I told you guys not to laugh," she moaned grudgingly. "This is so embarrassing..."

"Miki," Sumire laughed, "that's completely normal. Of course you would be self-conscious. You've never met him. And you've only heard his voice before pft."

"I agree with Sumire, though I am curious on what you look like," Hotaru spoke.

"I want to see what Mikan looks like too," Sumire sighed. "But we can't because of Natsume's request, and we have to listen to their promise."

Mikan sighed in equal disappointment. "I want to see what you guys look like too..."

"Well," Sumire clapped her hands, "we will once Natsume possesses the first look at you. For now, let's go back to the main chat."

The other two agreed as the Skype call briefly ended.

* * *

Nearly one week passed by.

Mother of God. Even though she had received the ultimatum from Natsume, he had not contacted her in the past week. In fact, whenever she went on, he seemed to dwindle, and then popped offline. It infuriated the brunette; she was embarrassed to have overreacted from his audacious request.

"Jerkface. Wandering poophead. Fatface," she muttered as she scribbled into her summer assignments. "The nerve of that jerk... _Some time this week_? It's nearly the end of the week!" The tip of her pencil snapped, and Mikan was forced to stand up to sharpen her pencil.

"Wow, you're really mad."

"I'm not mad!" Mikan stubbornly harrumphed at the Skype screen. "I'm just disappointed he failed to complete his promise."

Sumire sighed. "That guy is kind of a klutz when it comes down to girls. Give him a chance. The week isn't over yet."

"The week isn't over yet. Hah!" the brunette scoffed, crossing her arms. After steaming a little to herself, she frowned and sunk her head into her folded arms. "Fine, I will give him a chance, but I'll tell you...he won't remember or care enough to do it."

A little pause ensued. Then the girl replied, "Meh, who knows? Maybe he planned a surprise at 11:59 P.M. on Sunday night." Mikancould imagine Sumire wiggling her eyebrows while saying it...not that Mikan knew what she looked like anyways.

"That's not like that guy."

"You're right," Sumire agreed. "It is a bit cheesy. Then the most likely possibility is that he's a bit embarrassed and nervous to video-chat with you."

"You guys are serious right? You haven't seen his face through video-chatting?" Mikan asked, awed while interested. She pretended not to heard the previous statement Sumire made.

Her friend sighed on the other side. "I'm telling the truth. Anyways, do you like Natsume or something?"

Mikan sputtered. " _Like_ Natsume? You're kidding me! I don't like the jerkface at all!" She checked to make sure no stuttering was heard while she talked.

"Hmmm..." Sumire said with a hint of smile in her voice. "That's what they all say."

"I'm serious. I don't like him," Mikan sighed exasperatedly.

"Ok ok, fi -"

 _Bloop!_

Both were silent.

 _Bloop Bloop!_

"...Was that Koko?" Mikan asked cautiously.

"It's not my Skype. It's yours. And why did you immediately ask if it was Koko?!"

"You two seemed close. That's all," the brunette laughed. She then clicked out of wide-screen from Sumire's Skype call and looked on the column with a small expectation.

"Oh...Ruka messaged me."

"You seem strangely disappointed, Mikan," Sumire joked.

"Am not," she insisted before clicking on Ruka's conversation box.

 _Ruka: Hey Mikan!_

 _Ruka: Kinda a weird question, but are you free right now?_

 _Ruka: Just asking._

Mikan blinked before reading out loud the text messages to Sumire.

"Oooo what is this relationship development?!" Sumire squealed in delight. "I've always thought he had feelings for Hotaru, but maybe they shifted to you!"

"It's probably nothing big." Mikan rolled her eyes before typing back.

 _Mikan: Yea_

 _Mikan: Why?_

 _Ruka: Oh, uhm_

 _Ruka: I_

 _Ruka: Just felt like_

 _Ruka: asking..._

 _Mikan: ..._

 _Ruka: C:_

"What did he ask you?" Sumire questioned intently. "Tell meeee~"

"Really, he just asked if I was busy. Then he said he just felt like - wait, what kind of stupid question is that?!" Mikan jumped to her feet, trying to scrutinize some hidden code behind Ruka's messages.

"What, show me!" she demanded.

After copying and pasting the message to Sumire's chat, they both pondered over Ruka's apathetic questions.

"Maybe he's shy in showing interest?" Sumire guessed.

 _Bloop._

 _Bloop. Bloop_.

"I'm guessing that's Ruka," Mikan sighed as she went back to look at the side chats. However, Ruka's name did not light up...nor did Sumire's...

There was one name that flicked up, and after reading it, her heart leapt in flames of joy. Not that she was ecstatic or anything...but it was because he finally remembered his promise.

"What did Ruka say this time?" Sumire drawled.

Mikan could barely contain in her giggles. "I-It's...Natsume."

"Oh my," came her shocked reply. "That stupid kid finally did it...Oh dear lord. O-M-G, Good luck, Mikan! I'm going to hang up!"

"What, wait! Don't leave me a-!"

 _Call, 1 hr 52 min 12 s_

 _Mikan: -_-_

 _Sumire: XOXO GOOD LUCK_

 _Mikan: wahhhh_

Although she sounded hesitant, she felt as if she were mixed into a blender of happiness and nervousness. Her heart pounded against her ribs. She was going to video-chat with Natsume. Nothing was going to stop her...except her own voice.

 _Natsume: Wanna v-chat now?_

 _Mikan: Yeah._

 _Mikan: Uh_

 _Mikan: Just the two of us?_

 _Natsume: Yes._

Before she could inhale another breath, the Skype call came on. Her hazel eyes glared into the screen, specifically at that green button that had an image of a video. She was going to click it.

It was now or never.

As soon as Mikan pressed the tiny green button, she snapped her hand to the webcam, covering it with the tips of her fingers. Holy, crap. What had she just done?

With one eye closed, she yanked the other open, forcing herself to look at her computer screen. Immediately, she took a sharp intake of breath at him.

Gentle baby blue eyes. Blond hair. A small, delicate smile. A cute...flower boy.

Her eyes nearly flew out of their sockets. This was Natsume? The rich, dark, husky, sexy tone...came from this guy?! Silently, she prayed to the heavens above that she would never judge a book by its cover again.

Almost shyly, the boy waved at her from the screen. She released her fingers from the webcam and stared, shocked. Was this boy capable of calling her a Noob?

Desperatedly, Mikan searched the ocean-blue eyes for any sign of negativity, sarcasm, and...jerkiness. But there were none as she double-checked herself. There really were none. She opened her mouth to say something, but stopped due to notifications in the _GIRLS-ONLY_ chat.

 _Hotaru: what is happening?_

 _Sumire: she's video-chatting Natsume rn LOL_

 _Hotaru: Oh_

 _Hotaru: Take some pictures of his face._

 _Hotaru: I want to blackmail that guy._

 _Mikan: What?! No!_

 _Hotaru: Unless you want me to tell everyone that you like Natsume..._

 _Mikan: That's not true!_

 _Hotaru: They'll believe it._

 _Hotaru: Especially Natsume._

 _Mikan: DFAHSDFJLD_

 _Mikan: FINE_

 _Mikan: I can't believe you, Hotaru!_

 _Sumire: I'm not surprised at this point._

Angrily, she snapped off the girls' chat and smacked a smile on her face when she glanced back at her webcam, waving at the blond boy in front of her. He had a small, pale complexion - so fragile that Mikan felt guilty for typing all the mean stuff to him (then again, he started it). This was Natsume...the number one player of Gakuen Alice.

It's not like she expected much...yet her cheeks colored after replaying his voice in her head. She wanted to hear that voice badly.

"Hi," Mikan finally said.

There was a cough on the other side as she watched Natsume adjust his microphone. He cleared his throat before lowering his head to the small microphone. "Hi."

She blinked, absorbing the voice.

It took quite awhile before the brunette realized the unresponsive reaction of herself. It wasn't the same voice. There was no resonance of a tenor-bass voice. There was no switch to flaming her cheeks and stampeding her heart to butter. It was...normal.

"Are you sick? You sound a lot different," Mikan remarked.

The blond boy suddenly jumped, blushing as he scratched his neck. "Yea. I-I...I mean, my voice gets like this when I'm sick. Haa ha."

"Oh," Mikan reluctantly released the subject, watching the figure plastered on the screen. "You look quite different than I imagined you to be, Natsume."

Her hazel eyes blinked when he looked at the ground, unresponsive.

"Natsume?"

"What? OH! Yea," he chuckled, a bit nervous, "You look different yourself, Mikan."

She raised an eyebrow. "In what way?"

"In what way? Oh, I didn't mean it in a bad way! I swear!" He threw up his hands in alarm. "I just meant that uh...you don't...uh..." He squinted at the screen. "Uh...you don't look like a noob."

"Wow," she huffed. "Thanks?"

"Sorry! I mean-yeah. You're w-welcome," he stuttered.

She frowned even more, judging the boy one by one. It wasn't that she was turned off by his looks. He was actually cute. In fact, he was a beautiful person - a typical, gentle, and popular boy. It was just the dissimilarity in...their personalities and his way of speech. The Natsume who helped her out in Gakuen Alice was someone else in comparison to the Natsume she was video-chatting.

As she absentmindedly talked about life with the blond boy, she secretly pulled out the snipping tool from her computer and snapped a picture of the boy in mid-smile. While smiling all in politeness, Mikan transferred the photo to the group chat, the file reading _HIM_ _._

The brunette tuned back into the conversation, smiling and waiting minutes before the boy stopped stuttering over words. The conversation continued awkwardly, and Mikan regretted her agreement to video-chat with Natsume.

Not long after, frantic notifications popped from the girls' chat, and Mikan looked into it.

 _Sumire: What do you mean?!_

 _Sumire: Then who is she with?!_

 _Sumire: What the heck?!_

 _Hotaru: It's not him._

 _Mikan: What_

 _Mikan: What's going on?_

 _Hotaru: I..._

 _Sumire: That's not Natsume!_

 _Sumire: Hotaru knows what he looks like_

 _Sumire: That's not him!_

 _Mikan: WHAT?!_

 _Hotaru: That's_

 _Hotaru: not Natsume._

Mikan sat frozen, tuning out whatever that blond boy was saying. This little jerk wasn't Natsume. Her eyes focused in on Sumire's and Hotaru's claims before they flickered up to the webcam, angry and betrayed.

"Who are you?" she calmly asked with venom dripping in her voice.

"E-eh?" he squeaked before looking down. "I'm N-Natsume!"

"Don't pull that bullcrap on me. I'm asking you one more time. Who the hell are you?" Mikan growled.

"I'm Natsume! I-I told...I'M SO SORRY!" The blond stranger smashed his forehead against the desk, immediately giving up. "The real N-Natsume made me! I'm really sorry, Mikan!"

"Why'd he make you do that?" As Mikan questioned him, half of her felt relieved he was not the real Natsume. Yet the other side felt betrayed, hurt, and meaningless. Was she the only one who felt so elated at his video-chat request? Was he too busy for her? Was she just another annoying online friend?

Mikan's poor heart wrenched in sadness and loneliness.

The guy tried explaining. "H-he...! I-I can't say it, but Mikan, I swear, Natsume was-!"

"That's enough," she croaked. "I don't want to hear anything." Mikan then hung up the call, ignored the girls' Skype chat, turned off her computer, and walked to sit on the edge of her bathtub. Absentmindedly, the brunette turned on the faucet and set up a bath, allowing herself to soak in it as tears eventually dribbled down her cheeks.

The running water drowned her hiccups and sobs for the gameless night.

* * *

 **A/N: Hey gu - (ducks from flying tomatoes) - woah, lol. So yeah, SORRY! I know many of you were expecting the video-call this chapter, but instead, I wrote the fake video-chat. So now, Mikan's sad after discovering it (thanks to Hotaru), and we have no clue what happened to Natsume. Le gasp lol.**

 **What's a story without some drama, am I right, guys? :D -gets groaning complaints- LOL. Anyways, stay tuned for the next chapter. Maybe something will happen. Wink wink.**

 **-blessifier**


	7. Chapter 7

**I am back. Lol.**

 **Chapter 7**

A cloud of depression looming overhead opened her eyes to her dull surroundings. The brunette flipped under the covers, groaned, and blinked groggily into the morning sun.

Her eyes felt swollen as the waft of bathtub water swam underneath her nose. The brunette realized she forgot to let out the water and rolled off the bed. Slightly shivering from the miss of covers, she quickly drained the tub and hobbled back into bed, letting out a sigh as she crawled back into warmth.

Mikan finally turned and laid on her side, blinking out the morning fog until she could distinctly make out the items in her bedroom – dirty clothes, summer homework, and her laptop, which sat collecting dust.

It had been weeks since she had stopped playing Gakuen Alice.

It was also a slight shocker, seeing that she had previously spent the entire day dedicating herself to her avatar. Now – nothing. She had no motivation to go on. And she had no energy to talk to her guildmates, especially with that stupid incident, which had smacked her in the face.

Life suddenly diminished to loneliness, and she sighed apathetically. What she needed right now was a dose (actually, a _tub_ ) of ice cream and a marathon of Netflix. Rejuvenating her saddened spirit with somewhat mediocre fun, Mikan pushed away the bed covers and raced into the restroom, brushing her teeth and cleansing her body at sonic speed.

Just as she was about to flip open the dusty laptop, the telephone shrilled. The brunette glared at the blaring device and stomped over, irritably yanking the receiver and slamming it next to her ear.

"Hello?" she growled.

"Hey loser."

She blinked in shock and dismay. "L-loser?! Who is this?"

"You can't recognize my voice? You are a peasant," the voice coldly replied.

A familiar shiver ran up Mikan's back as her eyes widened. _No. It couldn't be_ , her mind reminded her. _There's no way she could have your home telephone number. That'd be just_ _plain_ _creepy, man._

Deep in her thoughts, she still found her voice again, "No! And y-you have no right…to call me a peasant…."

"Ignoring us for weeks… I understand that Natsume was an oblivious buffoon, but with your way of dealing with situations, you are no different from him."

At the mention of Natsume's name, Mikan nearly dropped the receiver and fainted. She couldn't believe it.

"Oh, and yes. I have your home phone and cellphone number. But you weren't answering your cellphone, so I had to use this number instead. Thankfully, your parents did not answer," she replied coolly.

"Hotaru?! How did you get my personal information?!" the brunette shrieked into the speaker. "That's just weird how you suddenly have my home phone number! The hell! I could call the police on you!"

"You wouldn't. And to your question, let us ask, how did I get Natsume's facebook? Would that question answer your question?"

"NO!" she yelled. "I'M HANGING UP! YOU BETTER NOT HAVE MY ADDRESS NEXT!"

"I already have it."

"THE F-!"

"Anyways, the reason I called you is because I want you to get online and face Natsume. I realize it is not your fault, but you can't ignore this issue forever. And we want you back," Hotaru interrupted quickly. "Sumire and Koko actually miss someone like you…"

"Thanks," Mikan cut in sarcastically.

"…and Ruka feels terrible while Natsume sounds as if he wants to jump off a bridge."

The brunette blinked once. Then twice. "N-Natsume? What? What's happening? Wait, does he sound like that?" Her voice slightly trembled.

"Come online and find out," she replied smoothly.

"I-" Mikan cut herself off, processing the conversation. The manipulator was toying with her – Mikan could feel it in her bones. She bit her lips. "No, I don't want to."

"I see. Well, how about this? If you don't come online-"

"Stop, Hotaru. Please," she begged. "Stop making me go online. Baits and blackmails…. I don't feel like it, and I don't know when in time I ever will come back to Gakuen Alice. I know I sound stupid, but I don't have the motivation to. If I want to quit, I will quit. If I don't want to speak, then I won't speak. Sorry, Hotaru. I want to be with you guys, but I'm doing what I feel like doing right now. Thanks for calling…e-even though it's creepy," she breathed in shakily and hung up before the latter could answer.

Sighing, Mikan turned back towards the kitchen and grabbed a bucket of tangerine ice cream. As she took a spoon from the drawers, she walked over to the laptop and dumped herself next to it.

"Just you and me again," she laughed and huddled forlornly near her bed.

* * *

The ice queen perked her eyebrows and let out a short irritable breath of air. Mikan had hung up on her, and she did not like that. _No one_ could hang up on her. Only she could do that to others.

Then again, the brunette had interrupted in the middle of Hotaru's (Mikan was correct) blackmail. She had planned something so inconceivable that it would have knocked the socks off of Mikan. It was something so insane she was surprised at herself (and of course, someone else will do this in her steed). Hotaru was very disappointed that she did not have the chance to say it out loud.

The ivory-haired teenager rolled back her office chair to the right to face another set of monitors, where her personal computer displayed her Skype account on the monitor. Her violet eyes glanced downwards until they landed on Natsume's tab, and her slender fingers flicked the mouse – then rapidly over the keyboard.

 _Hotaru: I have a proposal. You have to listen to it._

After five minutes of idleness, the other line finally responded.

 _Natsume: What?_

 _Natsume: Proposal?_

 _Natsume: Not interested in you._

 _Hotaru: You know what I mean, you imbecile. It is in regards to Mikan._

 _Natsume: Mikan?_

 _Natsume: What happened?_

 _Hotaru: Since there is a very low possibility that she will speak to us again (specifically you), I've arranged something._

 _Natsume: …_

 _Natsume: I don't want to ask what that 'something' is._

 _Hotaru: You have to. You've completely turned into an idiot. Ruka is now a walking imbecile wallowing in guilt. Sumire lost her spark. Koko doesn't know what to do about Sumire. And Tobito is just completely confused. Mikan's now a part of you guys._

 _Natsume: But she hates_

 _Natsume: me_

 _Hotaru: Of course. Who would think to do such a stupid thing because of a measly reason? It's no wonder Mikan is like that, being lied to. You made her lose her trust in us._

After typing that, Hotaru wondered if she had kicked away the remaining dignity of their friend group by stalking Mikan's phone number and address and openly revealing it to the brunette herself. She shrugged.

It wasn't the point right now, so she continued typing.

 _Hotaru: You're a pathetic loser. Congratulations._

 _Hotaru: So I will tell you about the proposal. Even if you do not agree to it, my minions will defy your will._

 _Natsume: I can really report you to the police._

 _Hotaru: You will be under my tab after this._

 _Hotaru: Tomorrow morning, you're going to the airport tomorrow._

 _Hotaru: And you'll be visiting Mikan in person._

* * *

 **A/N: I haven't updated in forever, jeebus. Sorry for that, let's all kick high schools and colleges in the face, haha. Anyway, as you can tell by this chapter, I have a massive writer's block, and I have no ounce of creativity right now (and I'm lazy to check for grammatical/spelling errors ggggg). Sorry again for the lack of updates. Might redo this chapter if I later re-read this and find it bleh. I rushed to update this after I saw the spam of reviews (cough cough, guest, LOL, love you).**

 **I don't know if people are still up-to-date with this, but if you are, thank you! I love you and your awesomeness.**

 **~blessifier**

 **P/S: Holy mother of turnips, there are 100+ reviews. I am wow. Such reviews. -shiny, glimmering, happy face- (insert heart) Thank you.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Warning: Slow-paced and incomplete chapter. GG AP tests.**

 **Chapter 8**

"I'm not going to visit her. That's final," Natsume huffed as he leaned back into his chair. The computer screen glared brightly in the dark as the clock read 4:24 A.M. Nearby, the speaker crackled as the recipient's face smirked on the Skype video screen.

"What a truthful statement," Hotaru sarcastically drawled as she pressed her hands against her lips, preventing a small laugh from escaping. Her eyes closed in amusement before piercing into the screen. "I know you feel guilt. You cannot deny it."

He folded his arms. "I'm not denying it. I feel like an asshole right-" the boy glared at her widening smirk before continuing, "-now, but visiting her…that's out of the question."

"Why is it out of the question?"

He ran a hand through his tangled hair and ruffled it before sighing. "It just is."

Hotaru sighed. "Do you perhaps mean, _I don't deserve to see her. I don't even know why I did that. I don't know why I was so scared to show my pitiful fa-_ "

"Okay, I get it. I'm an idiot. Times one hundred," he huffed grumpily.

A silence befell the two as an owl hooted in the distance. Hotaru, who simply sighed as she pressed two fingers against her temple. And Natsume, who dwelled in frustration and confusion.

Finally, the girl spoke. "Are you still lacking confidence to even see her face?"

Natsume's head shot up in alarm as his body tensed. A few splintering memories pierced into the heart of his mind. He could guess exactly what Hotaru was thinking of. The frustration boiled more furiously than ever in his chest. He gritted his teeth.

She leaned on her hand. "Of course."

A snap. "Talking as if you know me. You're hilarious," he said bitterly.

A flash of hurt reflected on Hotaru's face for mere nanoseconds – he wasn't sure if he caught it. However, the girl calmly cleared her throat and stared into her webcam. "I admit, I do not know you that well," she began. "Of the utmost truth, however, I desired to help, but I see that you do not trust me."

"I-"

She interrupted him. "Before I end the call, I would like to mention that I have sent you a plane ticket. Do not get me wrong. Everyone – Ruka, Sumire, Kokoro, Tobita, and I – have one as well. We want to visit Mikan to clear any obstacles in our friendships. If you do not want to come, you are free to discard the ticket. Otherwise, please arrive sharply at fifteen after ten tomorrow, and bring enough clothes to last you for four days. You will have this morning and the rest of the day to reach your conclusion. Good night – or should I say morning – Natsume."

A bloop sound was heard, and Hotaru's face vanished from the screen. Natsume only stared blankly at the screen before closing Skype and shutting off his computer. The room dimmed to darkness as he made his way to his bed. He plopped down. Thinking.

The clock glared 4:48 A.M.

* * *

He didn't even realize the sun was now up and grilling his face through the curtains. A groan wisped from his lips, and he sat up, rubbing the back of his neck.

From the corner of his eye, Natsume saw a regal-blue envelope decorated with gold bordering. He edged closer. The envelope displayed long yet skinny cursive writing that elegantly wrote his name and address.

On top of it was a yellow post-it note left by his father.

 _There's money for you on the kitchen counter. I'll be home late today. Tell me what your friend, Hotaru, sent you when I get back!_

 _-Dad_

 _P.S. Order and share a pizza with me when I get home. Thanks!_

Natsume placed aside the post-it note and threw the envelope into the trashcan. He didn't even need to open it. The teen then opened the door, dragged himself to the kitchen, took the money, walked back, and dumped it into his wallet. It was heavy with the money he had collected over the year.

The boy plopped himself into his chair before lifting the cover off of his computer screen. Before he turned it on, he saw his appearance. It blinked back at him. Whenever he moved, it would move. It was his reflection.

His teeth instinctively gnashed on his lips as he could taste a hint of blood. This habit and face would never leave him.

He immediately turned on his computer as the reflection vaporized into a white light.

* * *

"I'm home! Natsume?!" The door clicked open. "Did you order pizza?"

"Oh, shoot. I forgot," the teen yelled from upstairs. He logged out of the game and ran downstairs to see his father, slightly haggard from a day's work. "I'll cook something. It's a bit too late to order now."

His father only sighed. "Didn't you read the note I left you?"

"I read it in the morning with the envelope," Natsume said as he opened the refrigerator and picked out ham, green bell peppers, onions, and leftover rice. He then grabbed a ketchup bottle from the side.

"Oh," the man perked up, "what did your friend get you? A card? Postcard?"

"Ticket." He quickly diced the onions and sliced off the top of the green bell peppers. Walking to the sink, he cleaned out the seeds of the peppers.

The father raised his eyebrow. "Ticket?"

"Yeah. It's nothing."

"To where?" he asked eagerly. "To a concert? Dance? Restaurant?"

Natsume simply turned on the stove and dumped the content one by one into a saucer pan.

"You're not answering me."

"It's a plane ticket," he mumbled as he sprinkled salt and poured ketchup on. "Do you want cheese?"

"Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. But wait, a plane ticket? Is it from this online friend of yours?" he asked, suddenly alert. "Oh yeah, I've see that name before. Hotaru Imai. The very polite girl, right?"

"What about it?"

"Are you dating that girl?"

Natsume rolled his eyes. "No. There's nothing like that between us."

"Why did she give you a plane ticket?"

He paused in the middle of turning the knob for the oven. "To visit a friend," he said as plainly as he could.

His father raised one eyebrow. "A friend."

"Yeah."

"Are you planning to ask me for permission?"

"No."

"Why?"

Natsume sighed as he placed his hand on his forehead. "You're asking too many questions."

"Why?" His father repeated.

The oven bell rang as Natsume gently took out the stuffed green peppers. He placed the tray onto the table, and with two forks, he gingerly lifted one onto his father's plate. "New friend joined our group."

"And you guys all want to visit him?" The man noticed something flash in his son's eyes. "Or visit _her_."

"I told you, it's nothing."

"You don't want to visit the new friend for some odd reason. Since you're unwilling to answer, I'll guess that the girl is not a good person-"

"No!" Natsume slammed his fork on the table before blinking. His cheeks slightly flushed as he sat down again and gobbled down his meal. "Ish nuh-fing."

His father watched in amusement. "So she is a good person."

"Yuh," he mumbled as he ate faster.

"Then why not visit her? Have you and the others already video-chatted this new girl?"

The boy twitched. His eyes flickered to the side as he wiped his mouth with a napkin. "One of us did."

"Something obviously happened," his father chuckled. "Why not resolve it when you visit her? It's always nice to have a face-to-face talk.

"I'm telling you, it's nothing." Natsume then turned to his father. "Why are you so comfortable with me going with people I've met online?" He gazed at him quizzically while picking up a glass of water.

"I met Hotaru's uncle today."

Natsume immediately choked. "W-what," he sputtered.

"Funny thing is her uncle is the CEO of the company I'm working at. She visited her uncle today, and I immediately recognized her face from the video-chats. She was telling me about you guys."

The boy sat frozen.

His father continued cheerily, "I've never met a girl as stoic and prim as her before. She's one of a kind, I'm telling you."

He slightly recovered. "Father, can you do dishes?"

"Sure. But Natsume," he looked at him in the eye, "you seriously don't want to go?"

A pause.

The father sighed, "You'll end up regretting it for sure if you hesitate like that. But who knows what would happen?" He started biting into the bell pepper. "This is really good by the way."

"Night, father." Natsume walked up the stairs and hopped back into his room, letting out a deep sigh before digging into the trash can and taking out the envelope.

* * *

 _-BLOOP-_

 _-BLOOP BLOOP BLOOP-_

Hotaru, a refined seventeen year old girl, loved to stay on schedule. She liked to look her best, even during a situation of utter urgency, and it always occurred after a good meal, a good shower, and a good night's sleep – a good night's sleep meaning a full eight-hour blackout.

It was 3:29 A.M., and Hotaru had only slept for three hours so far. Her violet eyes flickered open in the darkness as her ears twitched to each notification her phone rang out. The screen of her phone brightened the entire room after each message.

A small aura of immense darkness enclosed the space around her as she checked who the perpetrator was.

 _Natsume: oi_

 _Natsume: are you awake_

 _Natsume: adsfaw_

 _Natsume: Hot_

 _Natsume: ar_

 _Natsume: u_

 _Natsume: the ticket_

 _Natsume: it's not in here_

Hotaru scoffed as she rubbed the sleep away from her eyes. She yawned as she slowly typed a response.

 _Hotaru: That is too bad then._

 _Hotaru: We will visit Mikan without you._

 _Natsume: what_

 _Natsume: seriously_

 _Natsume: what was this envelope for_

 _Hotaru: You can ponder about it._

 _Hotaru: I shall go back to sleep._

 _Nastume: I heard u_

 _Natsume: saying u would give me_

 _Natsume: a ticket_

 _Hotaru: Not everything in life is free._

 _Nastume: …_

 _Hotaru: Good night._

 _Natsume: WAIT_

 _-Nastume is typing…-_

Hotaru signed out of Skype and turned off the notifications before going back into bed. However, before she fell asleep, she let out a small, mysterious smile.

* * *

 **Super incomplete. I was planning to make this longer. But I gotta study for some exams. Thanks for the wait, guys! I'll try to do more later this month.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

He was there…so close that the cells of her fingers tingled in excitement. He was so close, with that smile, mysteriously quirked up on one side. She reached out further, only to fall down with a thump and a surprised yelp.

It took her a moment to realize that she had fallen out of bed and out of a strangely irksome dream. She rolled over onto her side, dazed. After five minutes, she clasped her hands around her face and sighed.

* * *

"She tricked me, god damn it," Natsume growled as he tossed the empty envelope and the troll face printer paper (which was inside the envelope, done by yours truly-Hotaru Imai) into the trash can. "And to think I had gotten up my hopes to visit-"

He flushed momentarily at his own words but shook his head.

 _-Bloop-_

Natsume jumped in surprise before blinking. He strolled over to his nightstand, where his phone was. Another notification sound popped up as he checked the perpetrator of the messages. His hold tightened.

 _Hotaru: Good morning._

 _Hotaru: This is your last chance._

Last chance? He stared harder at the screen before swiping across the screen, clicking away his password, and opening up Skype.

 _-Hotaru is typing-_

 _Hotaru: Imai Airport in 1 hour, if you're determined._

 _Hotaru: I'll see you. If it is a yes._

The dark-haired male turned and stumbled a bit before steadying himself. The Imai Airport? What was going on? Did Hotaru not trick him after all? Did she have his plane ticket?

A billion messages overflowed his mind as he desperately kicked open a suitcase and began stuffing clothes inside. Whatever was going on, he knew he needed to get there.

His dad walked in and balked, "Is this some rebellious stage?"

Natsume spun around to face his father. "Dad, I need to get to the Imai Airport."

* * *

Mikan slowly stroked the screen of her laptop, drooling at the discounted clothes that flowed beautifully on the models. Her fingers twitched towards her credit card, but she slapped herself, momentarily shaking her head. She needed to save money.

She sighed and flopped onto the floor. Everything was boring. She wanted to be with her friends, but they were all on vacation. She wanted to spend some family time, but her parents were on a business trip. She wanted to be with her online friends.

Mikan blinked. It had been so long since she talked to them. Without the daily Skype calls and plunges into dungeons, she felt lonely. Her mind instinctively drifted to Natsume.

Was it worth it get mad? As terrible as it might have been, was it worth the effort to avoid the entire group?

The brunette bit her lips as she stared at the Skype icon. After moments of repetitive debates between guilt and self-defense, she slapped herself on the face. Her slender fingers brushed across the keyboard.

She logged on.

* * *

"Wait, why are we going to the airport again?" his father asked as they lifted the suitcase into the trunk. "I thought you said the ticket was a prank by Hotaru."

"She messaged me to go to the airport."

"Oh."

Natsume flicked open Maps. "Want me to give directions?"

His father snorted. "I've driven people there so many times. You think I need it?"

"I was just asking," he scowled.

The doors shut closed as the engine revved to life. The car slowly backed out of the driveway and into the streets. His father turned to him. "Natsume," he suddenly said. "Why do you want to go now?"

Natsume looked at his father, swimming in his own sea of confusion. Indeed, why did he? His mind flashed to the start of it all. He had played Gakuen Alice the moment it was released, and for many months, Ruka was his only friend - perhaps because he already knew the blond in real life. It was not long ago since rankings came out, resulting his name becoming widespread across the novel yet popular MMORPG. Only then did he finally meet the others - and last but not least, Mikan. He barely knew her, heck, he barely knew the rest-with the exception of Ruka. He was cautious of ever letting out his private information.

Until, of course, that blackmailing queen stalked every bit of his personal information. He let out an annoyed sigh.

The soft engine of the car puttered as they passed by streets, some that Natsume hadn't seen before. He lived in that house his entire life.

Did he become crazy at some point? Why was he going? Did he even think about the danger?

"I have no idea. I'm crazy," he finally replied.

His father laughed. It was a small chime, charming in its way. "It's good to take your chances. That's the only way for you to be at your fullest. Of course with precaution, since I trust Hotaru's family," he quickly said. He then paused for a moment. "Yet consequently in taking chances, Natsume, you can, of course...also be at your lowest."

A moment of silence. "Did you take a lot of chances?"

"Well," he chuckled at his son. "that's how I lived the majority of my life so far. Getting your mother took a lot."

A small silence again sat between the father and the son. There was a flash of white that flowed by their minds – the long, black box. The soft lullaby that his mother had always loved played. There was a dull ache in Natsume's heart. He wondered if his father's heart had faltered at that second.

"Did you...ever regret it?"

"I think everyone has regrets in every decision they made," his father answered. "I may have had some...I'd be lying if I said I had zero. But...well, I never thought of them because of the time I spent with her."

"I see."

They continued on their way in tranquility, sitting on their conversation.

* * *

None of them were on.

She rubbed her eyes. Even the infamous Tobito, who was famous for staying online 24/7, was off. Where were they?

As she waited longer, Skype notifications suddenly popped up into her chat box. Most of them – she had noticed – started from weeks ago. The most recent one was from Hotaru, and the second was from…Natsume.

She gulped but started with the earliest, which was Ruka's.

 _Ruka: I'm so sorry, Mikan._

 _Ruka: I'm not quite sure what to say other than I'm really sorry._

 _Ruka: I was an idiot for agreeing to that v-chat._

 _Ruka: I don't want you to stop talking to us. Please._

 _Ruka: I'm really sorry._

 _Ruka: You can just not talk to me since I was the one who did it._

 _Ruka: …So, the_

 _Ruka: one who you saw was actually_

 _Ruka: me._

 _Ruka: Just please talk to the others too. They really miss you._

 _Ruka: As well as me._

 _Ruka: TTT_TTT_

The message continued for two days as Mikan's heart softened for the blond guy. So…the one, who she saw awhile ago, was actually Ruka. She sighed as her fingers drifted over the keyboard. She moved onto Tobito's (she was slightly surprised since he wasn't online at that time of the fiasco).

 _Tobito: Natsume was a jerk from what I've heard from Sumire._

 _Tobito: You're not on. :C_

 _Tobito: Come backkk, Mikan DXDX_

 _Tobito: I really miss you playing with us. :C_

 _Tobito: Mikannnnn_

There was a message for each day Mikan was absent from the group. Her lips slightly wobbled from Tobito's daily messages that came without fail. The only day that was missing was today's.

Then to Sumire.

 _Sumire: OMFGAAWFAWA MIKANN_

 _Sumire: WAHHHH FAWOFADAWA_

 _Sumire: THAT STUPID JERKFACE_

 _Sumire: NEVER FORGIVING HIM._

 _Sumire: HOW DARE HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE_

 _Sumire: I'M GONNA PUNCH KOKO_

 _Sumire: SINCE I CAN'T REACH NATSUME._

 _Sumire: AND PLUS, YA KNOW_

 _Sumire: HE'S MY NEIGHBOR_

 _Sumire: I'LL PUNCH HIM EVERYDAY_

 _Sumire: I HOPE THAT PAIN TRANSMITS TO NATSUME_

 _Sumire: I HOPE YOU GET ON SOON._

 _Sumire: I MISS YOU SO MUCH_

 _Sumire: WITH OUR DAILY GIRL TALK_

 _Sumire: -CRIES-_

Tears sprang out of her eyes as the brunette laughed her socks off. She wiped away a tear as she moved onto Koko's.

 _Koko: WHY IS SUMIRE HITTING ME?!_

 _Koko: COME BACK MIKAN!_

 _Koko: HER HITS ARE SURPRISINGLY PAINFUL_

 _Koko: I'M GETTING QUESTIONED BY MY FRIENDS_

 _Koko: THEY THINK I'M A MASOCHIST NOW_

Mikan burst into laughter again – this time, she rolled onto the floor holding her stomach. They had to be a couple. It was unimaginable for them to be with anyone else.

She paused at Hotaru's and Natsume's. She wasn't sure which one to read first.

The mouse hovered over both. Hotaru. Natsume. Hotaru. Natsume.

After much dilemma, she clicked Hotaru's.

Her breath hitched as her eyes widened at the single message.

* * *

"You sure you'll be fine from here?"

"Yeah, I'm sure." Natsume hopped out of the car and dragged the suitcase out from the trunk. "I'll have my phone with me, so I'll tell if you I'm with them."

"Wait!" The teenage boy turned to see his father clip something onto his inside of his shirt.

"What is this for?" he asked.

"Tracking. In case one of them is a kidnapper." His father gave him a thumbs-up. "Give me a text every two hours or so, or I'm sending the police, alright?"

A small smirk decorated Natsume's face. "Didn't you trust Hotaru's family?"

"Well, easier said than done. Gimme a call if it was another prank. If it is, I'll actually have a talk with her uncle," he warned. After adjusting his son's shirt and checking off the list of needed items, he hesitantly continued, "Are...you fine...you know...going out like this?"

"What do you mean-"

"What's up with that boy?" A voice floated over Natsume's shoulder and into his ear. "Did you see his face?!"

His body stiffened to the point of ice.

 _Is he a delinquent?_

 _Right?! That's what I thought when I saw it!_

 _Haha, what if..._

He forgot. He completely forgot. The adventurous excitement suddenly dimmed to almost nothing. Everything that had motivated him flew away. The spark was extinguished.

"SHH!" The second voice came harshly. "Don't say stuff. He might hear us." The footsteps quickly scurried away. His father glared in the direction of the speakers.

Natsume pressed his suitcase closer to his chest as beads of sweat trickled down.

How could he forget?

* * *

"Haha...ahaha...hahaHahaHAHAH! ...She's...kidding, right?" she asked in disbelief.

 _Hotaru: Make sure to clean up your house before we arrive, you cooped-up, overly-sensitive, drama-Queen, brunette idiot._

Mikan threw up her hands as she read the screen for the sixth time. "The string of insults was totally NOT necessary!"

She angrily stomped around before stopping in fear. Quickly, she ran over to the windows to close and lock them before scrambling back to the laptop.

"It's not what I think it is, right?" she muttered. "Door...gotta check if it's locked and bolted...Hotaru...SHE'S FRICKING CRAZY!" Her voice rang an octave higher as she blocked the door with chairs and tables. "WHO DOES SHE THINK SHE IS?! WHY ARE THEY COMING?!" Mikan crouched down in fear and shock. "HOW DID SHE KNOW WHERE I LIVE?!"

Mikan then cocked her head to the side. "That is weird. Did she ever confirm the fact that she knows my address?" After thinking, a relieved smile suddenly broke out on her face. "Thank god, And to think I believed that sneaky ice-queen."

She cheerfully went back to Skype, only to notice Hotaru had another message sent yesterday. She scrolled down.

 _Hotaru: I've confirmed that it is *** Strawberry Lane by the way. I wasn't lying about knowing your address._

A long moment of silence passed. Slowly, the brunette stood up, comically wobbled to her desk, and sat down on the office chair. She pulled out a drawer, picking out her diary, and took a pencil from the box.

She began.

 _Dear Diary,_

 _I'm sorry, Mom and Dad. I think I'm going to be kidnapped._

* * *

"I...I...c-can't..." He gritted his teeth in frustration. "Shi-"

"Nonsense."

He swiveled around. A tall, slender girl with short, jet-black pixie hair stood in his view. He immediately recognized her with the sharp characteristics. Yet, there were still differences he picked up. She looked more...proper in real life; the posture and the aura that surrounded her figure transmitted the scent of a successful yet monopolizing businesswoman. Her icy, violet eyes gazed at him - possibly inspecting him the same way his did to her - before flickering to his father. She tilted her head in acknowledgement.

"Mr. Hyuuga," she said.

"Erm..." his father stupidly answered before his eyes brightened in recognition. "Hotaru! How are you?"

"Your basic attempt at social interaction is hereby acknowledged." She turned her attention back to Natsume (as his father blankly scratched his head) and asked, "shall we head toward security checks?"

"Look, I..don't think-" he began before she reached out and grabbed his hand.

"One book is not judged the same by everyone," she said and tipped her head to his father. "We have his ticket. He will now be under my uncle's care. We promise his safety."

"Oh uhm...alright. Err, Natsume. Gimme a call when you get there, alright?" He smiled and gave his son a thumbs-up. "Have fun for once, okay?"

"But I-"

He ended up being cut off when Hotaru dragged him inside the airport.

* * *

 **A/N: Alright. I think that's enough for one chapter. lol. I had so many versions of Chapter Nine written out, so it ended up being tough in choosing which chapter. Sorry if this chapter turned out weird. I can't think properly nowadays.**

 **So many things happened over the span of one month. First of all, thank God AP's are over. Secondly, woot woot! High school graduation. Kinda nervous for that college life haha. Gimme advice pls.**

 **Thirdly...well, I'd like to dedicate this late message to the Orlando shooting. It happened not too long ago. I just wanted to say I hope the families of the victims are well and never again have to experience something so tragic.**

 **And lastly, another message dedicated for Christina Grimmie. I can't remember when I started watching her YouTube videos. I was probably pretty young. She was my role model and inspiration to continue singing through high school and...start choir and...yeah. It's not easy to express. I still can't accept the fact that she's passed on, since she has just started. The news hit me pretty hard. I want to tell her thank you for all the years of wonderful music she created.**

 **Uhm...Yeah. Sorry this got awkward. Anyways, I'll have more time over the summer, so hopefully I won't procrastinate as much. Haha. Thanks to those who still follow and read this story.**

 **-blessifier**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Done with fall quarter. -kicks college away-**

 **Chapter 10**

"Why are you so reluctant to see Mikan?"

"Why are you so pushy about seeing Mikan?" he shot back with a scowl and yanked his shoulder from Hotaru's grasp. He heard the girl sigh tiredly as he looked away.

"Why can't I be pushy about seeing Mikan?" she finally asked.

"That's easy." He faced her. "First, we all haven't known Mikan long enough. Second, she's an online friend who games occasionally. So how are we going to trust her?"

"At least she didn't lie. And realize that you came here on your own will, you hypocrit. I gave you a chance to back out. You came. And now you're complaining."

Natsume glared at her but couldn't say anything back. The guilt he had temporarily forgotten came back like a dead weight. And he did come because of that. He plopped onto a seat and pulled his suitcase in between Hotaru and him. "I'm not wrong for being wary," he said.

"You say that, but that isn't your reason. It's your self-consciousness that got in the way and ruined it."

He scoffed. "Yeah, everything's my fault."

"Maybe. And I'm not even being sarcastic." Hotaru tossed her hair back and clicked her tongue. "If you decide to stop being a brat, you can come to McDonalds with me to get a drink. Otherwise, go think about whatever you did 'right', and think that it may be 'wrong'." She pulled up her suitcase handle and stiffly walked away.

He growled and crossed his arms in contempt.

* * *

"Anna," Mikan cried into the phone. "Help...come back from Italy, please..."

"Uh...I don't know what to say..." a feminine voice replied back. "I can't come back because I'm doing some internship. But how do you know that they'll find you?"

"One of them messaged me my address...HOW FREAKING SCARY IS THAT?!" she suddenly shouted.

"That's what you get for talking to strangers."

"Maybe," Mikan hiccuped and stuffed more chips into her mouth.

"Are those chips I hear? Mikan, don't make yourself a fatty over the summer. Eat something healthy."

"It's lettuce," the brunette murmured, digging into the bag.

Anna sighed loudly. "You numb bucket, I can hear the difference between chips and lettuce. Now put that away or else I'll hang up on you."

"DON'T HANG UP!" she cried. "I MIGHT GET KIDNAPPED ANY SECOND. AND YOU NEED TO BE A HEARING WITNESS!"

"Dear lord...aren't you being a bit paranoid though?"

"THEY. HAVE. MY. ADDRESS. ANNA," Mikan exclaimed. "I'm scared that any second, they'll bust down the door with rifle guns and say something like 'Where the flippity shick shack is a girl named Mikan?'! One of them even knows what I look like, while another probably stalked my facebook, so I'm screwed if I try to sacrifice someone in my place."

"Look girl. Besides the whole talking-to-strangers part, aren't you good friends with them?"

"...G-good friends?" she blinked.

"You've been playing a game with them for some weeks. Then, because of one little incident, you decide to go bananas and hold a grudge against all of them, even though it was only one of them being an asshole. After that, you don't go on for several weeks. You ignore all their attempts to message you. Now they want to come visit you and even give you a little message before they do. So what do you say? I think they just miss you," Anna explained.

"...Miss me?"

"I mean, if I were to hang up on you right now and ignore you for several weeks, wouldn't you miss me?"

"Yeah."

"Good. If I heard any other answer, I would've slammed this phone back on its receiver."

Mikan laughed and wiped a tear from her eye. It was a good idea to call Anna.

* * *

He scrolled through Skype, ignoring messages of other players who requested a trade in-game. He kept swiping upwards as the screen scurried to the bottom. There were a few people he never contacted. Some were people he knew in real life, like Ruka. The others were players who probably quit the game or stopped using Skype.

The screen finally stopped, and an icy sweat covered his neck.

Group chat - 2012

 _Who the fuck do you think you are?_ was the last message that was in the chat's history.

He quickly scrolled back to the top, seeing familiar names pop up. His finger finally pressed down and paused the screen.

 _MikiOrange**_

The last message exchanged between them was his own from a couple of days ago. Mikan unsurprisingly never replied to it. And she probably never would. He looked once more at the Skype name and clicked on it, revealing their chat messages.

Natsume read them over and over again. It wasn't long, but he wanted something to distract his mind. A few messages he cringed at himself, wondering what had overcome his stoic mind. Giving her a ring...and asking her not to tell others. He lowered his cap and covered his face. Embarrassing.

But he didn't hate it.

He reread the messages again. It must've been the seventh time.

And that stuck it in him.

He was the one who asked Mikan to video-chat.

And he broke the promise. Out of selfishness. His self-consciousness that had nagged him last minute. Hotaru was right.

His cheeks and forehead warmed at realizing the extent of his bad decision. Mikan had trusted him to uncover her own face in front of Ruka. And somehow, she knew it wasn't him. Natsume couldn't imagine how betrayed she had felt.

He swiped the screen to the bottom of the chat where he saw his last message sent.

 _Natsume: Are you reading this, Mikan?_

It wasn't even an apology. He silently laughed to himself. It was a cowardly message. He pressed the chatbox and began pressing the letters, forming the words he felt were necessary to say.

Then he saw the symbol next to her name change from grey to green.

 _Mikan is online._

His fingers froze. And without realizing it, he deleted the words and turned off his phone and broke in cold sweat.

* * *

Mikan logged onto Skype, hearing the familiar ring and bloop that opened the screen. She had just realized she had never read Natsume's message.

Humming a bit, she clicked on history and pressed on Natsume's name that had (1) notification besides it.

She read it.

 _Natsume: Are you reading this, Mikan?_

The brunette looked at it quizzically as her fingers rested on her keyboard. They were itching to type something. She double clicked the text box and typed. With a final look, she hesitantly pushed enter.

 _Mikan: Yes, I am._

* * *

 _Bloop!_

Natsume blinked. A Skype notification? He pressed the power button.

His eyes widened at the simple message sent by her. The boy quickly swiped her message across and unlocked the screen, greedily reading her message over and over again. It was sent only a minute ago. Without waiting, he typed.

 _Natsume: Mikan_

 _Natsume: I'm sorry._

His arms were stiff as he reread his own message. Was it too little? Was it too straightforward? He anxiously waited and drummed his fingers on the arm of a chair.

There was no reply for several minutes.

He almost wanted to remove or edit his message before he saw _Mikan is typing . . ._

 _Mikan: I know._

Natsume stared at the screen. She had replied to his apology. He was about to say more before he saw _Mikan is typing . . ._ again.

 _Mikan: I'm sorry too._

 _Natsume: What_

 _Natsume: Why?_

 _Natsume: I was in the wrong_

 _Mikan: I ignored all of you guys for several weeks._

 _Mikan: I think that was a bit immature of me._

 _Natsume: You didn't do anything wrong, noob._

He froze from typing "noob" without thinking.

 _Mikan: Really?_

The dark-haired male sighed in relief at her unaffected response.

 _Natsume: Really._

 _Mikan: Then...you're really sorry?_

 _Natsume: Yes_

 _Mikan: Then_

 _Mikan: Can you do one thing for me?_

 _Mikan: Actually_

 _Mikan: Two things._

 _Natsume: What is it?_

 _Mikan: First, answer this._

 _Mikan: You are Natsume right now, right?_

 _Natsume: Yes_

 _Mikan: You're being weirdly nice right now_

 _Natsume: I can be mean if you want me to._

 _Mikan: lol_

 _Mikan: I guess you are Natsume_

 _Natsume: What's the second thing, noob?_

 _Mikan: Stop calling me noob._

 _Natsume: Sorry._

 _Mikan: I meant that in a joking way C:_

 _Mikan: Anyways_

 _Mikan: The second thing. . ._

 _Natsume: What is it?_

 _Mikan: Actually, can I have three things?_

 _Natsume: ..._

 _Natsume: Make up your mind._

 _Mikan: Just three things. No more._

 _Natsume: Okay._

 _Mikan: Alright_

 _Mikan: Answer this._

 _Mikan: Why didn't you video-chat me?_

 _Natsume: I_

He stared at the phone.

Then he inhaled deeply. And exhaled.

* * *

 _Natsume: I_

She waited. The message at the bottom saying _Natsume is typing . . ._ disappeared, and she frowned. Mikan rolled onto her back and sighed into the dusty air of her bedroom. She peered back at her laptop. Nothing.

She looked again.

Nothing.

She closed her eyes for around five minutes before she heard two _bloop_ 's from the laptop, and she propelled herself to the laptop screen.

 _Natsume: I'm_

 _Natsume: self-conscious about my face._

Her cheeks puffed out, red and bloated, before she began chortling. She read it over and over again. Self-conscious? The mighty number one player of Gakuen Alice?

She laughed, feeling some pressure taken off of her, before her Skype rang in notifications again.

* * *

 _Natsume: I have scars_

 _Natsume: from_

 _Natsume: my_

 _Natsume: from my real parents._

 _Natsume: I have burns_

 _Natsume: from school._

A sudden feeling of dread overwhelmed him. He felt like he should've typed more. His fingers pressed the text box. He needed to change the subject. Something happier.

 _Natsume: Anyways_

 _Natsume: I don't know why I_

 _Natsume: suddenly wanted to video-chat you._

 _Natsume: It was like I forgot all the shit._

 _Natsume: I'm sorry_

 _Natsume: for making a broken promise_

 _Natsume: Mikan._

He finished.

It wasn't happy.

He was scared.

His quivering hands held down the power button, and he swiped to turn off the phone.

A shaky breath was let out as he pressed his lips against the cold screen.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Just realized Tobito was actually Tobita. Oh god LOL.**

 **AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS, GUYS! CHERISH YOURSELF AND ALL THOSE BEAUTIFUL, SUPPORTIVE PEOPLE AROUND YOU!**

 **Chapter 11**

He stared absentmindedly out the window, watching the clouds hover by the airplane's wings. The sun shone so brilliantly over the blanket of clouds that he finally closed his compartment window. He picked at his food. There was not an ounce of hunger in him.

"Mommy, look!"

He lowered his cap instinctively.

"Stop it. That's rude."

"But he has - "

More hushes. Then silence. From his peripheral vision, he could see some people eyeing him with whatever emotion. Pity. Disgust. Horror. Hotaru had made him sit in the window seat, but her small frame could not block anything. When the flight attendant came by, he didn't say a word nor raise his head.

"There are games on here. Want to verse me?" Hotaru asked.

He pulled the stick controller from the side and shrugged as she turned on their screens. He watched the figures on the screen bounce as he nonchalantly whisked his fingers over the controls. Up. Down. Left. Down. Jump. Left. Up. It was repetitive. He could feel Hotaru eyeing him as he won nearly every round without a care. The last round, he ran into walls and failed to correctly enter the portal. Hotaru unsurprisingly won. The score balanced between them, for the last round was worth the most points.

"You went easy on me," she said.

"I messed up."

A pause. "Of course."

As usual, silence followed whenever Hotaru said something abrupt. He sulked in his chair, twiddling the phone over and over in the pocket of his jacket. It was warm since he had held it for so long. Without realizing it, he let out a small grunt and bonked his temple after remembering what he said to Mikan.

Hotaru looked over.

"Just thinking to myself," he quickly said.

She waved her hand in dismissal. "Not worried about that. Your phone is going to overheat in there."

"It's not on."

"It will if you keep holding it like that."

"You're overreacting. It obviously won't."

As expected, she sighed. "Do what you want. At least you're not complaining now," she grunted and snapped on some headphones. Letting out another sigh, she sank into her chair and tilted her head the other way. Her breath eventually evened.

Natsume, on the other hand, opened the compartment window and crossed his arms, bored. The clouds were still beautiful in the high noon sunlight, drifting by without a care in the world. Each cloud passing by meant him getting closer to Mikan. He would be able to see her. But...she would be able to see him.

The grip on his phone tightened.

* * *

Mikan barely dodged a monster as she quickly whipped out two binds, slashed upwards, and restored part of her health. Her heart was pattering a mile per second.

"Why is this so hard?" she whined and sunk into her seat. She groaned when she viewed the map, seeing how ten more red dots - indicative of monster presence - popped in. To her horror, there were no safe zones. Her mana bar was nearly depleted. She had already used half of her potions, which were extremely expensive.

A large zombie dragged its way over. As soon as Mikan was about to throw a bind, it hunched over and zipped in front of her screen. Mikan let out a small scream as she spammed more binds and fire spells.

"Tobita would've told me about the dungeon and monster information," she sulked when she watched it slowly perish into dark mist. The game didn't feel fun anymore since none of the guild members were on.

She saw that they had made extreme progress during her hiatus. Everyone on average leveled eight times. The guild level was now ten. Natsume was still number one. However, xKirito, supposedly his nemesis, was not far behind. There was only a five million EXP gap between them.

The guild setting was also changed to the most private one. More requests to join the guild had piled up so much that the notification on the guild wall was set to 999+. She shivered and clicked out of guild, only to see a giant dragonoid in front. Without hesitation, she tossed one bind and flared up her elemental skills.

After ten minutes of running in circles and hacking off each body part, she passed through the dungeon, letting out a relieved sigh and a satisfied smile.

 _-HazelOrbz is now Level 48-_

Her smile faltered.

No congratulations followed in the dead guild. It was as though she expected three or four purple messages to pop up as her fingers were ready to type a 'thank you'. She slapped her cheeks and pinched her nose before running to the next dungeon.

However, inches before the portal, she opened her phone.

No new messages.

Mikan inadvertently frowned in dismay and clicked off her phone screen. She cupped her face as she tossed it onto her bed.

With a small sigh, she clicked "W" to enter the portal and readied herself for combat.

* * *

*click*

Natsume jumped a little as his eyes flared. He whipped his head around, only to see a small child, who curiously looked back, clicking away on a toy. He exhaled in relief and faced forward, ignoring the wandering stares. His ears grew accustomed to the new sound, so he slouched back onto the chair.

 _Destination: 15:29 minutes_

His eyes waivered across the small screen. He then smothered his hands on his face. Every cell of his fingers traced the bumps, cracks, and gaps that were telling him to not forget. And he never did. Everyday was a reminder. What a sorry person he was, he thought.

The male looked over to Hotaru, who was still passed out, her breathing even. It never really hit him how tired she must've been after booking tickets and planning out everything. He sighed, now bothered that he never explicitly said one thank-you.

"Th..." he started. And stopped when she slowly turned toward him.

"Is there something wrong?" she asked.

"No," he replied, a bit too quickly.

She gazed at him suspiciously before turning to the small screen. "Thirteen minutes until we arrive. Are you nervous?" she read and added the end part with a small smirk. Before he even responded, however, she closed her eyes and said, "You should first see Mikan before any of us. We'll go in separate cars. I'll be visiting the others at the hotel."

"The others?" he questioned before realizing it. He blinked. "They're already here?"

Hotaru sighed into her hand. "You took way too long to decide. Of course they're already there."

"Shouldn't we all go together?" Natsume asked restlessly.

A brief smile flitted across her face. "Aren't you the main culprit here, Mr. Hyuuga? Shouldn't you be the first to confront her?"

"Yes, but-" he began.

"It was a majority vote anyways...for you to see Mikan first. Anyways, I -" She cleared her throat. "we'll see you later then," she waved and disappeared behind a far corner. He could only stand there listlessly in shock with sudden urge to fly back home.

One man in a black suit, however, flashed besides Natsume before he could do so. He bowed deeply. "I was requested to escort you by Miss Imai's orders. Shall we head for your destination?"

He took a deep breath in. And exhaled.

"We should get going then..."

Before he entered the car, however, he let out a small smile toward the corner Hotaru disappeared at. "Thank you," he said.

* * *

 _-HazelOrbz is now Level 50-_

"Yush!" she cheered and celebrated with a drink of water. She leaned back and stretched like a cat before letting out a long sigh. She rolled over to her bed and flicked open her phone.

There were still no new messages.

"Be that way," she muttered and tsked. Something inside of her felt a little funny, seeing that Natsume had texted her some sort of confession. She felt a bit happy that he trusted her with such personal information. However, the lack of response afterwards led on a tsunami of guilt within her stomach. Sure, she may have done nothing wrong. But the silence gnawed at her consciousness. Did she say something wrong beforehand?

"Aghhh, I don't know anymore!" she whined and buried her face into the pillow. She then flipped over, her heart pounding rapidly against her chest and her cheeks rosy red. Mikan blinked at the ceiling above her. "It's not as though they're kidnappers...right?" she asked herself out loud.

 _*Bloop bloop*_

"Natsume!" she yelled and dove towards her phone. She clicked open the screen.

 _Hotaru: Are you awake?_

She nearly crashed into the floor, embarrassed of her sudden shout. Completely flushed, she flicked across the message and typed in her password, opening Skype and rereading the text again before responding.

 _Mikan: Hey, Hotaru._

 _Mikan: What's going -_

The brunette gulped before deleting her previous text message. She left it at her greeting text, nervously fiddling her fingers and awaiting Hotaru's reply. A minute passed before the bottom of the screen changed to _Hotaru is typing..._

 _Hotaru: We're going to play together in an hour._

 _Hotaru: That's plenty of time, right?_

 _Mikan: An hour?_

 _Mikan: What do you mean 'plenty of time'?_

 _Hotaru: Oh_

 _Hotaru: Guess that hasn't happened yet._

 _Mikan: What?_

 _Hotaru: Nvm that._

 _Hotaru: Let's play in two hours._

 _Hotaru: I'm sure that's plenty of time._

 _Hotaru: So I better see the two of you on._

 _Mikan: What?_

 _Mikan: Two?_

 _Mikan: I'm already on tho!_

Hotaru never responded after that.

 _"_ What is going on?!" Mikan groaned and slapped her face, trying to dismiss any wandering thoughts. She pressed the phone against her face. "What are you talking about, you ice queen?!" she yelled indignantly.

 _*bloop bloop bloop*_

Mikan nearly jumped a mile away from her phone but steadied herself as she read.

 _Hotaru: If you're shouting at your phone right now and calling me an ice queen_

 _Hotaru: I suggest you stop._

 _Hotaru: Now._

A shiver ran down her spine. She looked around, blinking cluelessly. Was Hotaru recording her at this moment? Or perhaps... Mikan snapped to her senses and muffled her phone with pillows. "How...what the hell is she?" Mikan muttered. "Like hell you're going to listen to all the stuff I'm doing!"

 _*bloop bloop*_

 _Hotaru: I don't have access to your speakers._

 _Hotaru: So don't worry._

Mikan threw her phone across the room. "Telling me not to worry and accurately answering all my questions makes me worry more!" she shouted. She palmed her face and let out a tired sigh as she tied her hair into a ponytail. As she tied up her hair, however, her mind delved into the conversations and picked up little hints scattered. Giving more time. Two. Together. Her mind rewired to conversations before.

Visiting.

Her mouth dropped on the floor.

"W-WAIT, ISN'T THIS TOO EARLY?!" Mikan shrieked as she recalled the visit. "THEY'RE ALREADY ON THEIR WAY?"

Then she thought some more.

Two.

Natsume's sudden texts.

"Oh," she said to herself and finally deduced, "Then that probably...means... Natsume's coming. Maybe that's what she meant by _the two of us_." She looked at the lack of notifications on Natsume's side. "Maybe he was on the plane and texted me before boarding it. Ah...I see I see," she finished calmly.

 _*bloop*_

The sad phone notification echoed as she weakly wobbled over.

 _Hotaru: Natsume's going to visit you really soon._

"I. Know," the brunette gritted her teeth. "You could at least tell me before I realize it myself." She made a face at her phone. But she cupped her face, trying to calm her rapid pulse that was slowly accelerating.

Natsume was coming.

He was coming.

Her heart pounded. They were finally going to meet. Not like video-chatti-

Her heart sank at the thought.

She stared at the phone screen.

 _Mikan: Hey_

 _Mikan: Will it_

 _Mikan: Actually be Natsume?_

As she finished her last text, the doorbell rang.

* * *

"OH. EM. GEEEEEEEEE. ARE YOU RUKA?!" A loud girlish scream erupted as passerbys in the hotel lobby watched a green-haired girl fling herself onto a surprised blond boy. "I'M SO GLAD TO FINALLY SEE YOU GUYS!" she gushed loudly. Her head snapped to the left as her curls whipped the blond in the face. "OH! AND IS THAT TOBITA! WOW, YOU LOOK...GOOOD!" she finished lamely.

"Well, I know for sure you're Sumire," Tobita chuckled lightly, though he was a bit bothered by her last statement. He pushed up his glasses and ran a hand through his short

"Good to see you, Sumire and Tobita," Ruka responded. His bright blue eyes twinkled in laughter, but he looked around, appearing to search for someone. "Where's Koko? I thought he would be with you, Sumire."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, that doofus. He's busy playing a card game with some random strangers. I still don't get that kid."

"Card game?" Tobita echoed.

"Yep!" Sumire winked at Tobita, who blushed instinctively. "He's been good at reading movements. Maybe he should just become a detective when he grows up. I dunno~ But never mind Koko! Where's Hotaru? I need a girl friend with me! I heard there are really good nail salons around here. I have a chip from bashing my keyboard too much. See?" She displayed her long fingers that had baroque-style nails: vine-patterned nails contrasted against a bright red background with dashes of different glitters.

"Uhm." Ruka and Tobita looked at each other cluelessly before Ruka continued, "They're very pretty, Sumire."

"Right?!" she gushed.

Then a snap. Sumire stopped to glare at Ruka.

A complete one-eighty. "D-...do you need anything?" Ruka stammered under the pressuring gaze.

"Your face is exactly the same as the person Mikan video-chatted!" she accused. "Were you the one who tricked her?"

Ruka's eyes started to water as he looked down at the floor in guilt.

"Wait, d-don't cry!" Sumire tried to snap, though she ended up comforting Ruka in the end. "Geez, calm down. I'm not going to kill you like Hotaru..." She stopped when Ruka's eyes watered even more. "Oh dangnabbit!" she groaned and gave into the puppy eyes. "Just say sorry to Mikan, and you're fine..."

"Hold up." They both looked at Tobita, who tilted his head in confusion. "What's going on?" he asked.

Sumire nearly tripped. "What do you mean 'What's going on?'? Everything was hell for the past couple of weeks!" Sumire yelled. "We kept dying in those hell-level dungeons because Mr. BigShot - ahem, _Natsume_ \- was writhing in guilt! And no one could focus. Geez, if he didn't do all that crap, our guild would've been level 13 by now!"

"Yeah, I've noticed. But what _exactly_ did he do to Mikan? You only told me that he lied to her."

"Ohhh, right," Sumire chuckled guiltily, remembering how she only ranted vague things to Tobita. "You weren't there too. Well, long story short, Mikan and Natsume were going to video-chat, but Natsume decided to sub in Ruka instead without telling Mikan. And all hell broke loose-"

"You idiots are causing a scene in the lobby. Could you at least go to your rooms first before unleashing your chaos?" A cold voice deadpanned from behind. They turned around to a girl with a boyish-cut raven hair with flaming violet eyes. She narrowed them dangerously.

"Oh, it's the beautiful Hotaru!" Sumire piped up as the two boys shivered in the back. "How ya doing, girl?!"

"Stupendous, in fact," Hotaru replied dryly. "Now please go up to your rooms to talk before I allow the hotel management to kick you guys out."

"Wait!" Ruka held onto Hotaru's shoulder, though he quickly let go after seeing her stare. "I...uhm...Is Natsume here?"

"He's heading over to Mikan," Hotaru said nonchalantly.

Sumire nearly fell over. "WHAT?!" she screamed girlishly and smashed her hands onto Hotaru's shoulders. "W-wa-waitNatsumeiswithMikanrightnow?!" she blubbered incoherently. "Didtheyeventalktoeachotherbeforecomingohmigosh?!"

"Please remove your hands."

The green-haired female ignored her and waved her hands frantically. "What if Mikan's still mad at him? What if it's all awkward there?!"

Hotaru flicked Sumire on the forehead with a clean snap.

"Ow!" she cried.

The dark-haired beauty sighed into her hand. "If you forgot, the whole point of this trip was to reestablish their relationship. None of us could take Natsume's clumsiness anymore. And it was awkward whenever Mikan came into the subject. Weren't _you_ the first to agree to this trip anyways?"

"I forgot," Sumire wailed. "I just got too excited about seeing everyone~"

"I could tell," Hotaru said coldly.

"My oh my. Is that the infamous ice queen I spy?! The one who loves crabs so much that she's willing to sacrifice anything for it?!" A boyish voice called over. The four of them turned to a smiling boy with spiky dirty blond hair. "Yo," he said.

"Koko, is that you?" Tobita gasped and returned a high five. "It's good to finally see you!"

"Ey, Tobita! The almighty Gakuen Alice walkthrough guide!" He bowed and looked over to the blond. "I'm guessing you're Ruka then?"

Ruka playfully punched Koko on the arm. "I'd ditch you if you didn't recognize me after all those hours of video-chats."

Koko laughed and clapped him on the back. "Is everyone here then?" he asked and looked around. "There's only five of us. Who's missing?"

"Mikan and Natsume," Hotaru answered.

Koko covered his mouth in pretend shock. "A-...are they...somewheremakingout?! Didtheyuseprotectionlik-?!"

"KOKO!" Sumire slapped Koko on the shoulder. "BAD!"

"Stop abusing me!" he complained.

"You know, I would suspect that more on you two," Ruka remarked as he eyed the two suddenly-flustered teens. "You two are _very_ close. _Suspiciously_ close..." Tobita and Hotaru in the back nodded in agreement.

"Wait! B-but," Koko stammered as he desperately tried to think of something. "We're not - **OH!** " he shouted and pointed at Ruka triumphantly with a smirk. "You wouldn't want me to tell everyone about your crush, right~?"

Ruka looked at him in horror. "You wouldn't."

"Take that back then," Koko challenged.

Ruka grumbled a small, "Fine."

"Ruka has a crush?" Sumire asked, squealing.

"Please forget it," Ruka cut in.

"This is good for blackmailing," Hotaru said with a glint in her eyes.

"I knew it," the poor blond groaned and went to Tobita, who opened his arms for a sympathetic hug. "You're a traitor," he accused as he turned back to face Koko.

"That's what you get," Koko harrumphed but he waved his hands to change the subject. "Seriously though, where are Mikan and Natsume?"

"Natsume probably..." Hotaru flicked up her wrist and checked her watch. "...just got to Mikan's house by now."

Both Koko and Sumire dropped their jaws in shock. "HE'S GOING TO MIKAN'S HOUSE?!" they both shouted.

"Why not?" Hotaru looked at them coolly. "You two go over to each other's houses everyday. But it's platonic, if I'm correct."

"W-well I m-m-mean it's because w-we're childhood friends!" Sumire sputtered as Koko coughed, appearing to have choked on something. "A-anyways, how did you convince Natsume to go? A-and how did you get Mikan to agree?" she asked, trying to recover. "We all know that Natsume's kind of stubborn. And Mikan's pretty stubborn as well."

Hotaru leaned onto a counter and tilted her head. "I lied to Natsume that all of us wanted him to go. I also contacted his father since he works for my uncle. As for Mikan, I don't think she officially agreed to us coming here. I simply stalked her for her address and phone number, though that required some blackmailing."

One of the hotel receptionists nearby paled as he heard Hotaru and tried to back away quietly.

The others gaped at Hotaru in silence as she coolly took her luggage, entered an elevator, and flicked her hand to wave goodbye as the elevator doors closed.

* * *

"Pizza delivery for Mikan? A cheese-filled crust with pepperoni and...pineapples," the delivery man said as he read the paper and smiled at the brunette.

She blew out a huge sigh of relief and fanned herself. "Right, pizza," she said. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a rumpled ten dollar bill. "Sorry," she apologized.

"It's fine. Thank you! Have a nice day."

"You too," she replied and shut the door. The brunette deeply inhaled in the luscious smell. Her mouth watered as she quickly walked over to the table and opened the pizza box. She nearly picked up one slice before a Skype call rang from her laptop. "Curses," she muttered. "just when I was about to eat my pizza too..."

She opened her water bottle, took a sip, and nearly spat it out when she saw _Natsume is calling..._

"OH SH-! Uhm...a-AHEM. AHEM!" she cleared her throat and smacked her chest. After a full minute of clearing her throat, she stopped to stare at the screen blankly. Then she quickly pressed a green button and yelled, "HOLD UP! I NEED TO FIRST GET A SLICE!" Mikan sprinted across the living room, yanked a tissue, grabbed a slice, and ran back over to the laptop. She tried to calm her puttering heart. "Okay sorry about that..."

A snort was heard from the laptop. Then chuckles.

She blinked. "What's so funny?"

Then the brunette dropped her pizza in shock. She had pressed the _video chat button_ instead of the call button.

Mikan stared at the green light flashing from her webcam in horror. She watched her reflection stare back in the Skype window. Grey pajamas. Uncombed, frizzy hair with her bangs tied up. Oily hands. Tomato-stained lips.

"NO!" she shrieked and covered the webcam with whatever she could find. Paper. Tissue. Anything. Dear lord. Then she stupidly yelled, "DID YOU SEE?!"

"What am I supposed to say?" a silky voice answered.

"NO!"

"Then...yes."

"UGH!" she groaned and dropped her head. Then she glared at Natsume's icon next to her covered webcam screen. "You know, I look a lot better when I'm not pigging out."

"Oh, really?" he answered sarcastically.

"Yes _really!_ " she whined and, with one hand, changed it from video-chat to a regular call. She released her hands from the webcam and started picking up the pizza bits. "You're such a butthead!" she grumbled.

"You look fine."

She stopped whatever she was doing. Then she pinched her cheeks from smiling. "That...was random. I thought you'd say something like...'Wow, you look like a noob. Just as I expected.'"

"I was considering that." A little pause ensued before Natsume continued, "So...I saw your third request."

"Oh," she said, her cheeks tinting red.

"I'm. Uhm..." he began.

She waited for him to continue.

"First. Uhm," he broke off again.

She sat in silence, still waiting with a small feeling of dread.

"I'm...sorry about before. Really," he said with a large sigh. "And about...what I said before. You can forget it. I'm not sure what overcame me."

"No."

"Yeah, uh- wait _what?_ " he sputtered and coughed.

The brunette folded her arms. "Like hell I'm going to forget about it. That was serious, and...even though we joke around a lot...I don't want to take that lightly. I'm...actually really...glad you told me. And...stuff...so...yeah." She awkwardly paused and blushed. To herself, she was glad that she decided to turn off video chat.

"Oh...alright."

"So _anyways,_ my third request," she coughed.

"Right. So. Uhm - " He was cut off by a little honk.

Mikan nearly dropped her laptop off the table.

She had heard the same honk echo outside.

"N-Natsume..." she chuckled lightly as she picked herself back up. "A-are you...by any chance... _.outside my house?_ "

A bit of miscellaneous sound echoed in the back. Moving. Footsteps. "Uhm, maybe," he finally answered. "Did you hear the honk?"

"Yes."

"Oh."

"So..." Mikan tried to calm the panicky feeling building in her chest. Her voice trembled. "...I'm guessing the third request about video-chatting is kind of obsolete..."

"Yep...Unless you tell me to go away. Then maybe not." He also sounded a bit shaken. The usual silky voice now wavered in the air. "I'm...giving you a choice..."

Her face exploded into a red shade. "O-of course I'm not going to send you away! I wanted to video-chat you...b-but...AH JEEZ. HOLD ON FOR LIKE...FIVE MINUTES, ALRIGHT?!"

"So...you want to see me?" he asked incredulously.

Mikan ran out of patience. "OF COURSE I DO! THAT'S WHY I WANTED TO VIDEO CHAT YOU! BUT SINCE HOTARU PUT THE TWO OF US IN THIS POSITION, I MIGHT AS WELL SKIP THAT AND SEE YOU FACE-TO-FACE BECAUSE I WANT TO SEE YOU! YOU'RE A SPECIAL PERSON TO ME!" she shouted and panted.

Silence.

Mikan, after a few moments of resuscitating herself, nearly fainted and slapped her mouth.

"I-"

"SHUT UP AND GIVE ME FIVE MINUTES, OKAY!?" she shrieked into the laptop. "DON'T YOU DARE LEAVE OR TRY TO LEAVE SOME IMPOSTER OF YOURSELF LIKE YOU DID LAST TIME! YOU'RE THE REAL NATSUME, RIGHT?!"

"Y-yeah-"

"OKAY. I SWEAR YOU BETTER BE."

For some reason, she could sense him rolling his eyes. "You noob. I swear-"

"THEN FIVE MINUTES!" Mikan interrupted. "STARTING. NOW!"

She clicked the red hang-up button and snatched up the pizza, tossing the contaminated parts. Trash. Worn clothes. Laundry. Ramen cups. Water bottles. She ran around the house several times, cleaning spots she would've never touched. She slipped on a large sweater and changed into jeans. Then she tossed the dirty dishes into the dishwasher, combed through her frizzy hair, and stepped by the door, trying to catch her breath.

"You're going to be fine. You're going to be fine," she chanted. "You're fine. You're fine. Absolutely fine. JUST. DO IT! HE'S NATSUME. YOU KNOW HE IS THIS TIME." She breathed slowly. It was true though. The moment she heard his voice in the call, she knew it was him. The usual sarcastic voice. The playful yet serious personality with a tint of awkwardness. It was nothing similar to Ruka's.

She smiled to herself.

Then she frowned. "Wait, what if he's a smooth-talking kidnapper?" she asked herself out loud. She peeked through the peep hole. And almost banged her head against the door from the terrifying sight.

A dark-clothed figure. Ripped jeans. Large band shirt. Droopy black jacket. A lean figure...almost half a head taller than herself. His face was fully cloaked by a black face mask. A white baseball cap shadowed the remaining parts of the face. He was standing in front of her house, checking his phone.

She ran back to the laptop, clicked on Natsume, and called him. After hearing the pickup sound, she shrieked, "YOU LOOK FREAKING SUSPICIOUS. ARE YOU A KIDNAPPER?!"

"Hey- WAIT WHAT. NO I'M NOT."

"THAT FACE MASK AND THE BASEBALL CAP MAKES IT HORRIFYING."

She heard a stumble. As if the phone was dropped. Then he yelled, "I THOUGHT I TOLD YOU ABOUT MY FACE SCARS!"

"THAT'S TEN MILLION TIMES BETTER THAN THAT WEIRD GETUP!" she shouted back, panting. "TAKE THAT OFF, AND I'LL COME OUT!"

"WHAT. ARE YOU SERIO-?"

"YES, I'M SERIOUS. I'VE NEVER SEEN YOU EVER BEFORE, AND YOU MANAGED TO CATCH A GLIMPSE OF MY MESSY SELF!"

"THAT WAS YOUR MISTAKE.

She threw up her hands. "WHATEVER. I'M NOT COMING OUT WITH YOUR FACE CLOAKED LIKE A DEATH EATER."

"OKAY. YOU KNOW WHAT, LET'S JUST DO THE VIDEO-CHAT INSTEAD."

"NO. I WANT TO MEET YOU FACE-TO-FACE!"

He groaned, exasperated. "THEN _COME OUT_."

"HOW ABOUT _NO_? YOU LOOK SUPER SUSPICIOUS _._ "

"Oh my g - okay. _Okay_. Fine." He sighed with another groan. "I'm taking the mask and cap off for a _minute_."

"Really?" She brightened, silently cheering that she managed to change his mind.

"Starting now," Natsume interrupted. "...Sixty...fifty-nine..."

"WHAT. HEY-"

He ignored her. "FIFTY-EIGHT! Fifty-seven. Fifty-six. Fifty-five. Fifty..."

"YOU POOPHEAD!" She ran across the room. Up the stairs. Shoved on socks. Then down the stairs. She stumbled out toward the door and flung it open without a care. Her eyes squinted from the bright summer sun as small dark spots covered her field of vision. However, she could make out the startled person. "POOPHEAD!" she yelled again and rammed her head into him. He grunted in pain as they both fell over on the untrimmed lawn.

"Fuck." She heard him as she slowly got up, rubbing her head. "That hurt."

"Poophead," she muttered.

A grunt. "Noob."

Her heart burst in relief. It was the same voice. Silky. Deep. Rich. The brunette cleared her head from the pain and opened her eyes. Her breath, however, hitched in her throat.

 _He_ was in front of her.

Natsume was in front of her.

Without the face mask and the cap, she could see him clearly. It wasn't anything like Ruka's baby-face appearance. Natsume had jet-black hair. Spiked at the ends. Parted bangs to mainly one side. Slightly tanned skin. His eyes were a gorgeous burst of ruby red. Narrow. Almost brimming with a sharp sense of intellect.

However, it was also like he said. Scars. Matting the handsome face. A long jagged scar ran from one eye to his ear. Burned skin covered his right cheek. She calmly stared, observing and drinking every detail. It appeared as if he was doing the same to her. Observing in silence.

Natsume finally spoke. "One minute's up." He broke off the stare and reached for his mask and cap.

She smacked his hand.

Wincing, he whipped around to stare at her in confusion.

"Idiot! What's the use of them if I already know what you look like?" she retorted. "You look fine to me. If you're not a kidnapper, then that's good enough!"

Natsume rolled his eyes but chuckled, a small smirk etching across. "I told you already I'm not a kidnapper."

"You better not." Her voice trembled. Her vision started to blur. Hiccups.

He stopped. And he looked at her. Was he hurt? "Is my face making you scared? You can...tell me," he murmured.

She shook her head.

"Why are you crying then?"

"I DON'T KNOW!" Mikan suddenly snapped, startling him, and rubbed her eyes angrily. "You're stupid! Stupid! Do you know that?!"

He looked at her blankly. "What?"

"Stop assuming I'm scared of you or something stupid! I'm just sad! You're arrogant. You always tease me. Yet you always help me when I need it, so I treasure you a lot as a special friend! _Of course_ I'd be sad after seeing those scars! Your parents were stupid! Whoever caused those burns was also stupid!" Mikan blubbered and punched him hard on the shoulder.

He kept staring at her blankly.

"Stupid! You stupid person! You could've just video-chatted me! Why did you do all that with Ruka?! Sure I would've been curious about the scars, but I wouldn't be scared! Do you think I would've left the guild or something? How immature do you think I am?!"

"Well, for one-" he began.

"Shut up! Instead, you tried to make Ruka pose as you. That was _stupid_ because it was suspiciously obvious that it wasn't you, and I felt super shitty afterwards! Now, we finally get to see each other face-to-face after weeks of not talking to each other! I tear up after seeing your scars and remembering your past, but the first thing you ask is if _I'm scared of your damn face_! I'm just sad, okay!?"

"Okay. Calm-"

"NO! You should calm down! Why can't you realize that _I JUST WANT TO HUG AND COMFORT YOU INSTEAD?!_ " she shouted.

Then she instantly snapped her mouth shut.

 _Oh shit_ , her inner self spoke. _You just got yourself in some shit._

She covered her mouth. Shock. Horror. Embarrassment. Frustration. All of it boiled into a nauseating mixture in her stomach. Her cheeks were warming at an exponential rate.

Natsume opened his mouth, appearing to speak. But he closed it after some thought. He also didn't know what to say.

She felt tears dripping down her hands. Tears of embarrassment. "LOOK AT WHAT YOU MADE ME SAY!" she angrily snapped into the silence.

Then he laughed. His mouth fully open with pearly whites showing. He slapped a hand over his eyes and continued to laugh as she stared at him, confused, while rubbing away her wet eyes and dripping nose. She pulled away her hands and realized that - besides floods of tears - there was also pizza sauce smeared all over her face.

Fuck.

"Why didn't you tell me?!" she shrieked and desperately wiped her face. To her horror, there was more than expected. Her nose. Cheeks. Mouth. All covered in that damn pizza sauce.

"You scrub," he chuckled and pulled out a napkin as he roughly wiped her messy face. Though he was trying to contain it, he was still shaking with laughter. "You changed from your pajamas, but you didn't even check your face, you slob."

"You were counting down," she grumbled.

Natsume smirked. He tossed the tissue package to her. "Blow your nose."

* * *

The five of them - Ruka, Tobita, Koko, Hotaru, and Sumire - watched from bushes far away. Spying on their two guildmates, sitting on the grass. One laughing. The other embarrassed.

"I feel like we shouldn't enter on this scene," Tobita remarked.

"Ditto," Koko and Ruka chimed.

"They're sooooo cute~" Sumire cooed, her eyes sparkling in happiness.

Hotaru silently snapped photos, though a mysterious smile crept on her lips.


End file.
